Liverpool kept in contact with Southampton over Romeo Lavia yesterday, as they waited for Moises Caicedo.
The Reds have been pushing to sign Lavia for much of the last month. But having had a mammoth offer for Caicedo accepted on Friday morning, attention seemed to have turned to the Ecuadorian.
But according to journalist Fabrizio Romano, that may not have been the case. Writing for his Daily Briefing this morning, Romano claims that Liverpool were ‘in the mix’ for Lavia all day yesterday.
“Chelsea have also sent a new bid on Friday night to Southampton for Romeo Lavia, but again let’s wait for Caicedo before seeing the end of the Lavia story,” says the journalist.
“Because Liverpool also called Southampton on Friday afternoon regarding the 19-year-old. Chelsea consider Lavia a separate deal from Caicedo, but Liverpool have been in the mix all day too. Southampton will not sell Lavia for less than £50m, they’ve been clear on that.”
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Liverpool still in the mix for Lavia
As Romano points out, we likely won’t know exactly what’s happening with Lavia until Moises Caicedo’s future is sorted.
With it very much still unclear as to where the Brighton man will be playing this season, we might have to wait.
What we can say with some assurance is that Caicedo and Lavia are unlikely to be teammates. Although Chelsea are seemingly close to agreeing a deal with Southampton for the 19-year-old, it feels like a contingency plan in case they can’t agree over Caicedo.
Right now, Liverpool are reportedly relatively confident that the Blues won’t find that agreement with the Seagulls.
If they can’t, then Caicedo will surely end up at Liverpool. And if he does, Lavia will be highly unlikely to follow him. Some supporters would argue that Jurgen Klopp actually needs both players to compete this year.
But with the enormity of the figures involved in bringing Caicedo to Anfield, paying another £50m fee on a midfielder doesn’t seem plausible.
Nevertheless, with uncertainty over where the cards will fall, Liverpool are right to keep abreast of Lavia’s situation. That will likely continue through the weekend.