It is likely that Liverpool will miss out on the signings of both Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo to Chelsea.
Jurgen Klopp confirmed his club had reached an agreement with Brighton after submitting a staggering £111million bid for the Ecuadorian on Thursday night.
He said: ‘I was told that I can confirm the deal with the club is agreed whatever that means. In the end we want the player and not any kind of agreement. We will see what happens.’
The Liverpool manager was, however, keen to stress nothing had been finalised with the player who, just hours later, informed the Merseyside club he had no plans to move to Anfield and had his heart set on Chelsea.
Mauricio Pochettino is as desperate as Klopp to bolster the midfield following a string of high-profile departures and his club are now working hard to do a deal with Brighton who have rejected a number of bids and are keen to resolve Caicedo’s future.
Speaking ahead of this afternoon’s game against Luton, Roberto De Zerbi said: “I have already forgotten about Moises. I’m really proud of the players we have in the squad.
“We are Brighton, we achieved a big target last season – the same as Liverpool, better than Chelsea. I would like players who are proud to play in Brighton.”
Not satisfied with beating Liverpool to Caicedo, Chelsea are also growing increasingly confident of securing the services of Southampton star Romeo Lavia.
Liverpool have had three offers for the 19-year-old rejected by the Saints who are adamant they will not receive a penny less than their £50million asking price.
The Reds latest bid of £48m was rejected earlier this week and Chelsea have sensed an opportunity and have submitted an offer of their own, according to The Times, which they expect will be accepted.
In order to help finance deals for both Caicedo and Lavia, Chelsea have called off their pursuit of Tyler Adams, who had travelled to London on Friday ahead of a medical with a £20m fee having been agreed with Leeds United.
