Jürgen Klopp said that Chelsea managers usually get what they want as Liverpool braced themselves for the disappointment of missing out on the signing of Brighton’s Moisés Caicedo.
Liverpool agreed a £110m deal for the Ecuador midfielder on Thursday but he looks certain to head to Stamford Bridge in a deal worth £115m. Chelsea were understood to be finalising the transfer before hosting Klopp’s side on Sunday and are set to break the British transfer record for the second time in six months.
Klopp has been desperate to sign a midfielder this summer – the flaws were evident as his side opened their campaign with an entertaining 1-1 draw against Mauricio Pochettino’s side – and they also risk missing out to Chelsea in the battle to sign Southampton’s Roméo Lavia.
Chelsea have spent heavily under their Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership and Pochettino wants to strengthen his squad further before the transfer window shuts. “That’s what each Chelsea manager wants and usually they get it,” Klopp said.
Liverpool are prepared to break their transfer record to sign Caicedo, whose preference has always been to move to Chelsea. They have sold several midfielders this summer and remain in talks with Southampton regarding Lavia. Chelsea are also pursuing the 19-year-old Belgian.
Klopp saw Liverpool fade after a promising start, with Luis Díaz’s opener cancelled out by Axel Disasi scoring on his Chelsea debut. The manager played down Mohamed Salah’s angry reaction to being substituted in the second half.
Quick Guide
How do I sign up for sport breaking news alerts?
Show
- Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for ‘The Guardian’.
- If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
- In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications.
- Turn on sport notifications.
“I didn’t have a conversation yet with him,” Klopp said. “I don’t think you have ever seen Mo leaving a pitch happily. I can’t remember. That is OK. I didn’t think about it, I didn’t even know about it. I understand his disappointment, but I am the manager and we needed fresh legs. It was never anything to do with Mo or against him – 99% of the things we have achieved we have achieved with him or because of him.”
Roy Keane was critical of Salah while analysing the game for Sky Sports. “Don’t sit there on the bench waving your arms about,” Keane said. “It is OK to be upset but not for too long. Sit down and shut up.”
after newsletter promotion
Pochettino was happy with Chelsea’s display. “When we arrived here on the first day we didn’t want to talk about the past,” he said. “In football it’s about moving on. It’s about the present and the future. I am so pleased because when some difficult moments appeared, the team was there.”
The Metropolitan police’s football unit reported that two men had been identified after engaging in “tragedy chanting” at the match. It tweeted: “One was arrested on suspicion of public order offences and the other was ejected.”