Liverpool have reached an agreement to buy Moises Caicedo from Brighton and Hove Albion for a British record £110 million.
The midfielder could travel to Merseyside for a medical on Friday, but the finalisation of any move is still dependent on the Ecuadorian agreeing personal terms.
As revealed by Telegraph Sport on Thursday, Liverpool made a late move for Caicedo and outbid Chelsea, who had been leading the race for the midfielder all summer.
It remains to be seen whether or not Chelsea make a last-ditch bid to match Liverpool’s offer.
The development would represent a significant blow to Chelsea and Mauricio Pochettino. Since January, Jorginho, Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and N’Golo Kante have all left the club.
Caicedo had made it clear for weeks that he intended to move to Stamford Bridge.
Liverpool have been interested in Caicedo for months, as reported by Telegraph Sport earlier this year.
The deal would break Liverpool’s transfer record, which was the £75 million they paid Southampton for Virgil van Dijk in 2018, although the initial £64 million paid to Benfica for Darwin Nunez could rise to £84 million when add-ons are taken into account.
Caicedo would be the second Brighton player after Alexis Mac Allister to join Liverpool this summer as part of Jürgen Klopp’s midfield revamp.
Bayern Munich are also admirers of Caicedo and it is understood they have been considering making a move to rival Chelsea and Liverpool for his signature.
The battle for Caicedo comes after Chelsea decided to go head-to-head with Liverpool in the race for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia. Sources believe that Chelsea’s £48 million offer for Lavia, which was submitted on Wednesday night, could be linked to the unfolding race to sign Caicedo.
In addition to their pursuit of Caicedo, Chelsea are closing in on the signing of Tyler Adams from Leeds United in a deal worth around £20 million. The move for Adams is not related to their ongoing interest in Caicedo, with the club keen to sign both players this month.
Liverpool, meanwhile, are desperate to strengthen in midfield after losing Jordan Henderson and Fabinho to Saudi Arabian clubs this summer.
The battles for Caicedo and Lavia are made more interesting by the fact that Chelsea face Liverpool in their opening Premier League match of the season this weekend.
