Liverpool could yet find themselves involved in the transfer race for an in-demand Premier League midfielder, according to The Telegraph.
Their reporter Sam Dean wrote that, depending on the cost, the Reds could yet join the race for Moises Caicedo, who’s also attracted interest from Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United.
His club Brighton are set to demand £70m for the Ecuador midfielder, whose teammate Alexis Mac Allister is seemingly on the brink of signing for Jurgen Klopp’s side, and the Seagulls would allegedly let the 21-year-old depart the Amex Stadium for the right price.
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It’s beyond doubt that. much like his team, Caicedo has enjoyed an excellent season in the Premier League, standing out as one of the foremost defensive midfielders playing in Europe.
As per FBref, he ranks among the top 13% of positional peers in the continent’s five main leagues for tackles (2.87) and interceptions (1.61) per game, with his qualities in destroying opposition attacks laid bare by those returns.
However, the question Liverpool may be asking themselves is whether the £70m-rated Ecuadorian would represent better value overall than some of the other midfielders with whom the club have been linked.
Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone are among two of the most-cited targets, with the French duo thought to command asking prices of £52m (Daily Mail) and €40m-€45m (£34.5m-£39m, BILD) respectively.
Which would make more sense – acquiring those two for around £80m, or spending £70m on Caicedo alone?
Perhaps Liverpool are hopeful of negotiating down the price for the 21-year-old much like they appear to have done for Mac Allister, for whom Brighton were reportedly going to demand £70m a few weeks ago (Sky Sports) but could now be signed for half that amount (Fabrizio Romano).