Liverpool had the full backing of their owners, FSG, for their £110m British transfer record fee for Brighton’s Moises Caicedo, according to Paul Joyce.
The Merseysiders have found business with the Seagulls to be far less simple this time around, with Chelsea refusing to drop their interest despite the former being the only club to meet expectations with their offer.
“Brighton are prepared to sell to the highest bidder and Liverpool’s move brings pressure on the west London club, who had a third offer of £80 million rejected last month,” the Times journalist reported. “Yet the deal that Liverpool have struck is way above what Chelsea had previously submitted, with the owner, Fenway Sports Group, sanctioning the move.”
After dallying when it came to Romeo Lavia’s £50m asking price with Southampton, however, we’d be far from surprised to see some raised eyebrows when it comes to the sudden decisiveness shown in the market.
READ MORE: Caicedo has now told Liverpool who he wants to sign for amid Chelsea’s renewed pursuit
READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp’s first words on Moises Caicedo as ominous contract warning shared
This deserves some clarification. The most important distinction to make between our interest in the Belgian international is that we were not of a like mind with the Saints when it came to their valuation of the young midfielder.
Though £110m is certainly no drop in the ocean for Caicedo, Liverpool’s recruitment team evidently feels that the asking price is far more reflective of the Ecuadorian’s value.
With the going rate for midfielders of his calibre sitting around the £100m mark (see Declan Rice to Arsenal), we were left with a difficult decision: pay the money or get quickly left behind.
As things currently stand, we may very well be forced to return to our original plan in Lavia if some breakthrough can’t be made in the near future.
At the very least, it’s reassuring that Liverpool will be backed if they feel they can identify an expensive, but suitable, signing before the window draws to a close.
Could be that Lavia was a smoke screen all along.