One perfectly-timed image from the opening round of South America’s 2026 World Cup qualifiers on Thursday night is doing the rounds on social media and is set to leave Liverpool fans grinning from ear to ear.
The Reds kicked off their summer transfer activity by signing Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton for an initial £35m in June and had a deal agreed for his former Seagulls teammate Moises Caicedo two months later (BBC Sport).
However, the latter instead chose to join Chelsea in an eye-watering £115m move (The Athletic) in what felt like a hammer blow for the Merseysiders at the time, but his difficult start to life at Stamford Bridge has already raised questions over the fee paid for him.
The one-time clubmates were in opposition to each other overnight as, nine months on from winning the 2022 World Cup, Argentina kicked off their bid to reach the 2026 finals with a 1-0 win over Ecuador.
During the game, in an image shared by ESPN UK on social media, Mac Allister left Caicedo grounded, with the Blues midfielder vainly attempting to stop the Liverpool man by grabbing hold of his shirt.
Of course it’s far too simplistic to use one photograph to judge the players’ respective performances, but Sofascore ratings of 7.4 for Mac Allister and 6.2 for the 21-year-old illustrate which of the two had more of an impact on the game.
Despite the Argentina playing for slightly fewer minutes than the Ecuadorian, he completed far more passes (65 v 19), took far more touches (85 v 49) and won more tackles (three v one) than the Chelsea man.
It’s no wonder Liverpool fans will feel they got the far better deal from Brighton this summer in comparison to the west Londoners.
You can see the image of Mac Allister and Caicedo below, via @ESPNUK on Twitter/X:
Moises Caicedo coming up against Alexis Mac Allister during World Cup qualifiers 😳 pic.twitter.com/AT5QXzWbbC
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) September 8, 2023