30 January 2024 , 22:30
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Jurgen Klopp has doubled down on his claim that Liverpool "got lucky" by missing out on Chelsea flop Moises Caicedo.
Klopp joked to fans last month that he was delighted the Reds didn't end up paying a British-record £115million for the now ex-Brighton midfielder, who dramatically U-turned on a move to Anfield in August and instead chose to sign for Chelsea. Since then, 22-year-old Caicedo hasn't made the impact that Chelsea fans expected of him after new boss Mauricio Pochettino welcomed the Ecuador international to Stamford Bridge with high hopes.
Meanwhile, Liverpool promptly turned to Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo, buying him from German side Stuttgart for just £15.4m, adding to their earlier midfield signings of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. The Reds are now top of the Premier League table and remain in the hunt for four trophies, so it's understandable why Klopp - in his final season with the club - feels vindicated.
"We found Wataru, we already knew Macca could play the position and Dom was always on my radar," the Liverpool manager explained on Tuesday. "If one of the £100m (signings) had worked, there's no chance to do another. That's what I meant when I said we are so lucky. Everything in the 'if not scenario' worked out."
In December, Klopp jovially told fans during a test event for the club's expanded Anfield Road End stand: "The summer we had, we had a few strange things happen in the transfer market but here, between us, I can say, 'My god, were we lucky, eh?'
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"We didn't know that in that moment and it didn't feel like it in that moment, but yeah, I'm really happy that it worked out, but you never know before."
Caicedo wasn't the only midfielder who the Reds missed out on to Chelsea either, as Belgian starlet Romeo Lavia ended up in West London after multiple bids from Liverpool. Lavia, 20, has had a nightmare with injuries and only played 32 minutes since leaving Southampton.
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Moises Caicedo has struggled so far at Chelsea (Getty Images)Real Madrid talisman Jude Bellingham was first on Klopp's wish-list, though, as the English sensation was preparing to leave Borussia Dortmund in July. "We were interested in Bellingham, realised it would not happen and we thought we could maybe do Caicedo so went in," Klopp explained.
"(But) he had an emotional agreement already with Chelsea and Maurcio Pochettino. Then Lavia had his own reasons - so we were there. Then we found our top solution."