Even if they ‘hijack’ Liverpool ‘hijack’, Chelsea have discomfited themselves with Caicedo hunt
Liverpool panicked late on Thursday night, offering £110 million for Moises Caicedo while Brighton was negotiating with Chelsea. The true stench of desperation, however, emanates from Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea appear to have lost a contest in which they were the only competitor for the majority of the summer. After spending the entire time period denying to pay Brighton’s asking price, they eventually gave in, offered even more money, and were still left with custard dripping from their chops.
Nobody should know more about how Brighton operates than the Blues. The Seagulls are masters of their craft, having profited nearly £400 million from the sale of footballers over the past three seasons while developing each year.
With the acquisitions of Marc Cucurella, Graham Potter, and Robert Sanchez, Chelsea has contributed over £100 million to Brighton in the past year. Todd Boehly is aware that Tony Bloom is not a jerk. Each participant has his own price, and there are no discounts. Yet Chelsea has spent the entire summer pursuing Caicedo, the only player they truly require. Now, they may face him on Sunday at Stamford Bridge if he makes his Liverpool debut.
Salutations to Liverpool. Their midfield, with Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister, and Dominik Szoboslai, would appear formidable, despite the fact that you would be correct to query the manner in which they have remodeled their engine room. If a bit lacking in substance.
In contrast to Chelsea, however, Liverpool’s depth is unmatched. The Blues’ midfield comprises of Enzo Fernandez, Conor Gallagher, whom they would have liked to have sold by now, and a pair of imported teenagers, one of whom may be loaned out this season and the other of whom almost certainly will be.
Few managers will show Mauricio Pochettino any compassion. This group of four still cost £140 million, and one of them is homegrown. Given the amount of money Chelsea has spent this year and the volume of their recruitment, it is mind-bogglingly irresponsible for them to enter the Premier League season so deficient in such a crucial position.
They are reaping what they have sown. They took a misguided position on Caicedo in January, when they distorted the market for themselves and everyone else.
When they paid a British transfer record £106 million for Fernandez on the final day of the transfer window, after the Argentine international had spent less than half a season at Benfica, suddenly every elite central midfielder was worth nine figures. The fee charged by Fernandez became the standard against which Declan Rice and Caicedo’s fees were evaluated. It is impossible to present yourselves as hard-nosed negotiators when you’ve played the patsy as frequently as Chelsea has – just for Brighton.
If Chelsea had read the Bloom as everyone else has by now, they would have signed Caicedo weeks ago for less than the amount they yelled over the phone Thursday night. And Pochettino would have the ideal midfield partner for Fernandez. Instead, in his first game as Chelsea manager, Poch is already contemplating repairs and substitutions.
Mercifully for Chelsea, their opportunity to acquire Caicedo has passed, but the transfer window remains open for another three weeks. Southampton will have noted their fruitless relent, which, if necessary, should serve to strengthen Saints’ resolve regarding Romeo Lavia’s value.
However, after signing Lesley Ugochukwu last week, Pochettino commented on the paucity of experience in his engine room. “We need experience in the midfield,” he said, but Lavia cannot provide it.
USA captain Tyler Adams, who is 24 years old, is a veteran compared to Pochettino’s other options, but Chelsea would have to wait for the Leeds midfielder to recover from a hamstring injury suffered in March that is expected to keep him out until next month.
We shouldn’t rule out the possibility of them doing something crazy for Caicedo to regain the initiative from Liverpool, and Chelsea’s current predicament is far from hopeless. The fact that Pochettino is scrambling for a midfielder on the opening weekend of the season despite having a full, uninterrupted summer does not make the situation any less chaotic.
Even if they ‘hijack’ Liverpool ‘hijack’, Chelsea have discomfited themselves with Caicedo hunt