Liverpool vs. Moises Caicedo: Was it all Smokescreen?

Liverpool prior to the current transfer window and all the Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia drama, built an identity for itself pertaining how they carried their transfer business, much to the envy of the football world.

But come this summer window, all the good works laid by its previous Sporting Directors came undone when the club’s hierarchy decided to tangle with Chelsea’s summer dealing.

This has left the club to battle negative media attention that has now raised a lot of questions than the club owners, Fenway Sports Group will want to answer. To say Liverpool are in a transfer mess and have now become the summer joke, will be an understatement.

It all started in a dragged out chase for Belgian and Southampton midfielder, Romeo Lavia whom the Reds were established to hold genuine interests in for 4 weeks straight, struggling to negotiate his signing with recently relegated Southampton for a €50million sum.

Liverpool submitted approximately 3 bids, all of whom were rejected at varying intervals. Then like smoke over night, the Twitter space lit up like fireworks, announcing the Reds had gone in to submit a bid of €110 million for Moises Caicedo who was very close to moving to Chelsea from Brighton.

This resulted in a lot of complications, and by virtue a transfer mess for both sides as it meant Chelsea, who were already established as the preferred destination for the Ecuadorian, will have to pay more in order to get the services of the Brighton star.

Liverpool thus, went from not being able to cough up a €50million fee for Romeo Lavia, to bidding a record fee at the time of €110 million, knowing full well where Moises Caicedo’s interests and loyalties lied.

Chelsea remained persistent in gaining their man who rightly wanted the move to Stamford Bridge, preferring to pay more than let Liverpool have him.

The daring move by Liverpool took the internet by storm, dazzling football analysts and giving the likes of Fabrizio Romano and David Ornstein a following as everyone awaited the resulting move.

As it turned out, the Reds failed to cajole the Ecuadorian to Anfield, with not even the words of the legendary Jurgen Klopp able to convince the star to leave behind his Chelsea goals to take a detour to Anfield. This of course, raised a very penitent question; why would a club bid for a player without making sure the player was on board for a move?

For a club that has built a reputation for itself as shrewd business experts, preferring to dot the I’s and cross the T’s, dropping a huge bid worth €110 million without checking in with the player himself was as suspicious as the club refusing to part with a €50million fee for a cheaper prospect.

Was it all smokescreen? Where did Liverpool suddenly garner a €110 million after building up narratives that there was no money to spend on big signings this summer? What became of John Henry’s visit to Stamford Bridge at a time the Liverpool fanbase needed answers than silence?

Have Liverpool become a joke? Or is this a game of PR played by its Boston owners, Fenway Sports Group?

So many questions facing Liverpool, and it alludes to something very negative seriously going sideways behind the scenes.