Chelsea midfielder Moisés Caicedo recently confirmed that he was “almost” an Arsenal player but “waited” until the Blues came calling after rejecting Liverpool’s advances.
Caicedo was a man in demand in 2023. During that year’s winter transfer window the former Brighton & Hove Albion star was reportedly the subject of multiple bids from Arsenal, the second of which was thought to stack up at £70 million ($92.8 million). The Seagulls ultimately held firm, prompting an angry statement from Caicedo’s representative at the time, Manuel Sierra, who huffed: “This is an opportunity that may not be repeated in life.”
Arsenal did indeed shift their focus away from Caicedo, snapping up Declan Rice for £105 million in that summer. Caicedo would move to Chelsea for a fee worth up to £115 million in the same window despite strong interest from Liverpool.
Ahead of Chelsea’s clash with the Gunners on Sunday, Caicedo was asked about his potential move to north London. “I almost did it,” he confirmed to the , “but now I’m here and I’m so happy. The timing was good.”
Liverpool reportedly had a £115 million bid of their own for Caicedo accepted by Brighton only to be turned down by the player. “I waited until Chelsea came for me,” the boyhood fan of the Blues revealed. “People laughed. They said I chose the wrong place, but sometimes you need time to adapt to a big team. I needed that.
“I want to give everything to this club because they didn’t doubt me. I chose Chelsea because they have ambitions. I want to win trophies—more trophies with this club.”
Ex-Reds boss Jürgen Klopp claimed that Liverpool were “lucky” to not sign Caicedo in 2023, yet the all-action midfielder would hardly be turned down by many clubs these days—even if he doesn’t quite accept all the acclaim coming his way.
