It has been no secret that Liverpool have been the strongest suitors for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia. The club have had three separate bids rejected as the Saints holdout for their £50 million valuation.
During this time, it seemed as if no club had an interest in entering the bidding process or they assumed Liverpool would eventually land their man.
However, Chelsea FC have seemingly appeared from nowhere and lodged a £48 million bid for Lavia. What is interesting is the Blues definitely have the money to give Southampton what they want. Yet, they stopped just short of meeting the firm number that has been set for months.
Is this the Blues just trying to force Liverpool’s hand to make them cough up the remaining difference?
Chelsea have had their own saga for a young defensive midfielder as they have been pursuing Moises Caicedo for just as long.
Their most recent bid of £80 million having been rejected by Brighton. Do they see Lavia as an alternative option or is he just a tool to show Brighton they aren’t the only party in town?
This morning, reports have surfaced that Liverpool have now contacted Brighton to discuss a verbal deal with Brighton for Caicedo.
There is some clear doubt that the Reds would seemingly be open to splashing £100 million on Caicedo after months of haggling over an extra £5 million to secure the services of Lavia. What is more clear is this is a message to Chelsea.
If you want to come in and muck things up for us with our guy, we can do the same to you.
The most likely scenario from all of this would seemingly be Chelsea sign Caicedo and Liverpool signing Lavia.
However, if this summer has taught us anything, it’s the transfer window brings chaos until the final hour.
Liverpool and Chelsea are massive global brands that are playing a petty game with each other. Both sides need a quality defensive midfielder. The way they are going about it though leaves a lot to be desired.
Yet, both sides will need to pay up if they want to secure their man. Whether that means Liverpool suddenly open the vaults to break the bank on Caicedo, or finally cave in to Southampton’s demands for Lavia.
In the end, the very public flexing between the two clubs has brought neither side any closer to getting their primary targets. The posturing could prove frivolous and it likely won’t change the trajectory of either deal.
Yet, the threat is still there. if you’re Liverpool and lack the financial might of Chelsea, perhaps this should be the final kick in the rear needed to get a deal across the line.
All these transfer shenanigans only add fuel to the fire when these two teams meet on Sunday to kickoff the Premier League season. Let’s see if Lavia or Caicedo could be involved.