Chelsea are poised to beat Liverpool by signing Moises Caicedo after agreeing to pay £115m for the Brighton midfielder.
Liverpool, who have been trying to bolster their midfield this summer, secured a £110m bid for the Ecuadorian international on Thursday night and were trying to persuade him to join them. Chelsea have refused to give up on Caicedo and, after negotiations, are set to break the British transfer record for the second time in six months.
Chelsea, who host Liverpool on Sunday, paid £106.8m for Enzo Fernandes in January and want to pair the Argentine midfielder with Caicedo. Sources have confirmed that a deal with Brighton is not yet done, with talks over payment structures and additions still ongoing, but unless there is another development, the 21-year-old will head to Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are offering more wages to Caicedo, who favors him over Liverpool, and are closing in on a £55m deal for Southampton’s Romeo Lafia, also a target for Liverpool. A source close to the talks said the move for the Lafia region was separate from the Caicedo deal.
Meanwhile, Nice goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel is being seen as a possible replacement for Kepa Arrizabalaga, who is set to join Real Madrid on a season-long loan.
Real Madrid have been in the market for a goalkeeper since losing Thibaut Courtois to a serious knee injury. They have beaten Bayern Munich rivals to Arrizabalaga, who would rather return to Spain than reunite with former Chelsea boss, Thomas Tuchel.
Their agreement with Arrizabalaga does not include an option or obligation for Madrid to make the loan permanent. The 28-year-old has lived through mixed times since Chelsea made him the world’s most expensive goalkeeper five years ago, signing him from Athletic Bilbao for £71.6m, and is hoping to move to the Bernabeu to revive his career.
After promoting the newsletter
Chelsea have already sold Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy to the Saudi Professional League and need extra cover in goalkeeping. They were prepared to spend big on a new No. 1 at the start of the summer, but modified their plans after failing to find a buyer for Arrizabalaga, whose large salaries made it a difficult sell. Mauricio Pochettino has settled for a cheaper deal for Robert Sanchez, who joined from Brighton for £25m. Sanchez could start against Liverpool.