Chelsea now ready to move for £34m player who Liverpool were apparently leading the race to sign

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Chelsea are ready to disrupt Liverpool’s attempts to sign Gabri Veiga from Celta Vigo this summer.

According to a report in The Northern Echo on Monday, the Reds are currently ‘firm favourites’ to land the 21-year-old Viega.

But now, as per The Guardian, that could be about to change. They claim that, just as they have throughout the last year, Chelsea are set to wade in on another club’s transfer target.

The Blues will reportedly ‘push hard’ to sign Veiga, who has a release clause of around £34m. Liverpool are also mentioned, with the Reds said to be ‘considering’ a move for the Spaniard after tying up a deal for Alexis Mac Allister.

Barcelona are another named suitor of Veiga, who looks virtually certain to leave his boyhood club during the window.

Chelsea muscling in on the market

As Liverpool aim to navigate an important window, they’ll be wary of the likes of Chelsea making life difficult for them. The Reds and the Blues are both in the market for midfielders and are likely to target many of the same players.

In this specific case, that shouldn’t necessarily matter all that much, though.

Over the past year, Chelsea have been completely distorting the market. Their trigger-happy spending on the likes of Enzo Fernandez in particular have helped to drive prices to ridiculous levels.

With clubs willing to put down big fees already, Todd Boehly and co have been willing to simply go higher, each and every time.

But with Veiga, they can’t that. The presence of a release clause means that the price is already set. And at £34m, it looks like being a very good price, too.

So, the only bidding will be done on wages, bonuses, and trying to convince the player himself in terms of sporting project on offer.

As far as that goes, Liverpool are no slouches. They have one of the highest wage bills in the country and are often prepared to subsidise slightly lower transfer fees with decently-sized wages. And in terms of sporting project, who on earth would choose Chelsea over Liverpool right now? We don’t think we have too much to worry about here.