Chelsea’s record signing Moises Caicedo has spoken out about his first four months at the club, in the aftermath of Jurgen Klopp’s comments that Liverpool had a “lucky” transfer window despite missing out on his services.
Caicedo was the talk of the football landscape over the summer, after a transfer tussle for the ages which saw him finally secure his dream switch to west London, despite a late £111m bid being accepted by Liverpool as Klopp sought to put the cherry on top of the cake with his newly crafted midfield.
Caicedo’s snub left Liverpool licking their wounds, though it’s fair to say the Ecuador international’s move has gone anything but to plan so far.
Chelsea have endured a miserable campaign, failing to string victories together and consistently being beaten by a host of teams well below their weight class. The Blues sit in 12th place in the Premier League after 16 matches as a result, with just 19 points amassed.
Liverpool, in stark contrast, currently top the Premier League as the festive period approaches with 37 points. Klopp’s men have been defeated just once, which came in the highly controversial form of a VAR-hampered showdown with Tottenham which later proved to have had Luis Diaz’s goal wrongly taken away.
Speaking this week, Klopp reflected on Liverpool’s transfer window and appeared to poke fun at Chelsea for beating his side to Caicedo for huge money, and also youngster Romeo Lavia for £65m, while reaping little reward.
Speaking at an Anfield test event ahead of their new stand opening this weekend, Klopp took a swipe at the duo in front of 10,000 Liverpool supporters by saying: “The summer we had… we had a few strange things happen [to us] in the transfer market,” said the German. “But here, between us, I can say… my god, were we lucky, eh?
“We didn’t know that in that moment, to be honest. It didn’t feel like it at that moment. But I’m really happy that it worked out like that. I had a really good feeling when we started pre-season, when we had [Mac Allister] and [Szoboszlai] already in.
“Then we [found out] there was a chance [to sign] Ryan [Gravenberch], then we obviously realised that other central defensive midfielders don’t want to join Liverpool. Yeah… you see what happens! And then we bought [Wataru] Endo and he’s an exceptional player.
“The transfer market is like that. You don’t go for a 30-year-old midfielder who nearly got relegated in Germany, but thank god we looked at things twice. He wanted to come, definitely, and that helps.”
After Liverpool’s £111m bid was accepted by Brighton for Caicedo in the summer, Chelsea had no option but to go higher. As a result the Reds twisted their rival’s hand into paying a British record fee £115m for the defensive anchorman.
Now, Caicedo has spoken out on turning down the advances of Liverpool, suggesting the Reds failed to act with enough prior notice, and also his ongoing struggles at Stamford Bridge.
Sitting down in conversation with Sky Sports, Caicedo said: “I chose Chelsea because I was talking with them first and then it was impossible not to choose them. They were with me, supporting me because in the summer I suffered a lot because it was complicated to leave Brighton.
“They were with me. In the last moment, Liverpool called me but it was late. It was too late, you know? I wanted to play for Chelsea and the people that worked here were with me through every moment and it was tough to say no to Chelsea.”
Caicedo has also acknowledged that his family are now “suffering” as a result of his form on the pitch, and Chelsea’s ongoing struggles.
Criticism has poured in for the 22-year-old, with many fans and pundits alike arguing that he does not have the excuse of having to take a period of adjustment to Premier League football.
Caicedo added: “It’s Chelsea, you know. At Chelsea, you always have to win every game and if you don’t, you’ll feel the pressure.
“I’ve only been here for four months, everything is new for me and I think it’s about time. It’ll take time because I know my quality, I know my teammates and it’ll be our time.”
