Liverpool gazump Chelsea in Moisés Caicedo war with record £110m bid — reports

I wasn’t expecting clarity in the Moisés Caicedo situation until the weekend, but it appears we have clarity on late Thursday night already. And if we want(ed) Caicedo, it’s not clarity of the good kind.

According to multiple reports, including from David Ornstein at The Athletic and Fabrizio Romano at his Underground Lair (err, Twitter X?), Liverpool have submitted an official bid of £110m, which Brighton & Hove Albion have (gleefully, probably) accepted. Apparently, Brighton had set a deadline of midnight for the bidding, and Liverpool have thus been declared the winners. (That’s assuming we would be silly or desperate enough to match that bid, a new British record, to begin with.)

Obviously nothing is signed or sealed and dramatic things can happen at a moment’s notice in the transfer market, but it would appear that after a two-month pursuit (if not longer), we have stumbled at the finish line — either willingly or unwillingly.

The only clear winners here are Brighton themselves. And Caicedo himself, I suppose.

So, Roméo Lavia then ... at £50m? Or are we happy with the current options plus Tyler Adams? These are the moments when we need clarity of a long-term vision and the fortitude to execute to it despite hurdles and setbacks.