Chelsea “close” to defeating Liverpool to sign Moises Caicedo

Chelsea is “on the verge” of thrillingly signing Moises Caicedo before Liverpool.

A deal between the Blues and Brighton is reportedly “close to being fully agreed,” according to The Telegraph, in what has been one of the biggest transfer sagas in Premier League history.

According to reports, Chelsea will outbid Liverpool’s earlier $111 million offer by paying a British record transfer fee of £115 million.

After Brighton accepted their offer, the Reds appeared to have won the battle for Caicedo’s services. But it’s believed that the player would rather join Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea then had the chance to resume talks with the Seagulls and persuade them to strike a deal for the Ecuadorian international. In line to sign a long-term contract is the 21-year-old.

The west London club made Caicedo their top target during the summer transfer window, but several of their offers for the player were rejected before Liverpool entered the fray.

The two clubs’ Sunday Premier League matchup at the Bridge heightens the tension.

Pochettino declined to comment on the Caicedo transfer when questioned about the transfer this week.

In his press conference prior to the game, the Argentinean stated, “You know me very well, I never talk about a player that doesn’t belong to us.

We are making a lot of effort to bolster the squad with quality players. I don’t want to talk about players who don’t play for us right now. We are working extremely hard, and I couldn’t be happier with how things are going. “.

Roberto De Zerbi, the manager of Brighton, claimed that as the new season got underway, he had “already forgotten” about Caicedo.

“I’m incredibly proud of the players on our team. Our goal is to keep getting better. The club deserves the praise. Larger clubs can purchase our players, but they cannot purchase our soul or spirit. “.

More news……….

Chelsea has a secret weapon to defeat Liverpool, and it is not Moisés Caicedo

When Liverpool and Chelsea square off in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, football.london examines how Chelsea can take advantage of Liverpool’s defensive weaknesses.

The opening Premier League match between Chelsea and Liverpool, which was already quite intriguing, has become absolutely mouthwatering as a result of recent developments.

On Wednesday night, it was revealed that Chelsea had made a £48 million offer for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia, who has already been the target of three offers from Liverpool. The significance of Chelsea’s proposal was being questioned by many. Was it done to force Brighton to sell Moises Caicedo, a top midfield target, or was there real interest in Lavia?

The competition to sign Caicedo has reportedly become even more heated as of Thursday morning, according to reports. This may help to explain Chelsea’s acquisition of Lavia. It can be very exhausting to try to keep up with the mind games that are going on before the Premier League opener.

Such behind-the-scenes activity has all but diminished Sunday’s important match between the two clubs. But this is how things are in the world of football today. Transfers are now frequently in the spotlight.

In his first competitive game as Chelsea’s head coach, Mauricio Pochettino will, however, devote all of his focus to finding a way to defeat Liverpool. The Argentine has faced Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp 11 times across all competitions, but he has only ever come out on top once.

The other four games, played under Klopp, resulted in draws.

Klopp has won six of those contests. Pochettino, who will be seeking just his second victory this weekend, is well aware of Liverpool’s defensive weaknesses, which remain from their underwhelming 2022–23 season.

Liverpool’s defensive problem.

The German manager has survived by employing a high defensive line ever since being named Liverpool manager back in October 2015. The Reds boss has stood by it even in the worst of times, though it has frequently proven to be successful.

It enables the team as a whole to move up the field and use Klopp’s infamous “Gegenpress” system, in which his team attempts to suffocate the opposition with an intense and relentless press. Liverpool’s defense can frequently become exposed if that press is broken, though.

This (shown in the image below) is just one instance of how the Reds’ defense has been abused. The German team actually broke the initial press, played it out to the right wing, and looked over the top during their final preseason match against Darmstadt on Monday night.

The deepest defenders for Liverpool were Ibrahima Konate and Andy Robertson after Virgil van Dijk went tight to an attacker on the halfway line. Attacker Mathias Honsak of Darmstadt then discovered space between Konate and Robertson, stayed in his own half, and ran through before putting the ball past Alisson.

How Chelsea can profit from Liverpool’s weaknesses.

In the January transfer window, Chelsea acquired Mykhailo Mudryk for nearly £90 million and Noni Madueke for about £35 million. Due to a minor hamstring issue, Madueke hasn’t had much preseason practice, but Mudryk has been preparing well for what will be a big season for the international from Ukraine.

With all the space the Liverpool back line will inevitably leave behind them, Mudryk could have a lot of fun playing against them. Mudryk, who wants to succeed at the Bridge, would be the ideal candidate to launch a counterattack, which could be extremely important.

Similarly, Nicolas Jackson, who cost about £30 million to sign with the team earlier this summer, has already made it abundantly clear to his teammates that he wants the ball passed over the top to him so he can enter the play from behind. Jackson had a fantastic preseason and displayed his all-around talent, but he has a knack for playing on the last defender’s shoulder and snatching up errant passes.

On Sunday, either of these attackers could pose serious difficulties for Liverpool. The rest of the team must attempt to withstand what is anticipated to be a ferocious press from the opponents at Stamford Bridge.