Tag Archives: Anfield

Moisés Caicedo Breaks British-Record Transfer Fee in Move from Brighton to Chelsea

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Moisés Caicedo is breaking records… 

The 21-year-old Ecuadorian professional footballer has completed a move from Brighton to Chelsea for a British-record transfer fee of £115 million ($146m), the club announced on Monday.

Moises CaicedoThe move puts an end to a monthslong transfer saga, with Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino having labeled Caicedo as his No. 1 target this summer and the club’s opening bids being rejected by Brighton.

However, Chelsea faced competition for his signature. On Friday, Liverpool broke ground and agreed a £111m fee with Brighton — the first club to do so — only for the midfielder to reject a move to Anfield and instead indicate his desire to join Chelsea.

Chelsea upped their offer, with sources telling ESPN the club agreed a deal on Sunday that includes an initial £100m in guaranteed payments with a further £15m in add-ons. Around half of the add-ons are described as easily achievable with the other half considerably harder to trigger.

“I am so happy to join Chelsea! I am so excited to be here at this big club and I didn’t have to think twice when Chelsea called me, I just knew I wanted to sign for the club,” Caicedo said in a statement after signing an eight-year contract at Stamford Bridge.

“It’s a dream come true to be here and I can’t wait to get started with the team.”

Caicedo enjoyed a successful spell at Brighton after joining in February 2021 from Ecuadorian side Independiente del Valle. He spent the first half of the following season on loan with Belgian outfit Beerschot.

He went on to make 53 appearances in all competitions for Brighton and becomes the latest club personnel to go to Chelsea, following in the footsteps of Marc Cucurella and Robert Sánchez as well as former manager Graham Potter.

Chelsea’s coup in signing Caicedo means they have spent over $1 billion in player transfer fees since the new ownership led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital completed their takeover of the club in May 2022.

Roberto Firmino Agrees to Three-Year Deal with Saudi Arabian Club Al Ahli 

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Roberto Firmino is headed to the Middle East… 

The 31-year-old Brazilian professional footballer has joined Saudi Arabian club Al Ahli as a free agent after his contract at Liverpool expired at the end of last season, it was announced Tuesday.

Roberto FirminoFirmino, a forward, has agreed a three-year deal with the Saudi team and joins former Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy at the Jeddah-based club.

The Brazil forward spent eight years at Anfield, scoring scoring 110 goals in 361 games.

Firmino won seven trophies with Liverpool including the Champions League in 2019 and the club’s first-ever Premier League title in 2020.

Clubs in Saudi Arabia have pursued an aggressive recruitment strategy in recent months, persuading some of the sport’s biggest names to sign lucrative deals with teams in the country — Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al Nassr in January and Karim Benzema left Real Madrid for Al Ittihad earlier this month.

Al Ahli won the Saudi First Division League title last season to achieve promotion back to the Saudi Pro League for the 2023-24 campaign.

Liverpool Agrees on Transfer Deal for Benfica Forward Darwin Nunez 

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It’s official… Darwin Nunez is Liverpool bound.

Liverpool has agreed on a deal to sign the 22-year-old Uruguayan professional footballer and Benfica forward in a transfer worth up to €100 million, according to ESPN.

Darwin NunezIt was previously reported that both clubs were in advanced talks over a deal, and sources confirmed that Liverpool is set to break the team’s transfer record to sign the striker.

Nunez will sign a five-year contract at Anfield, according to sources, and he has left the Uruguay national team to travel to England to undergo a medical.

Sources have told ESPN that an agreement was reached on Saturday between the two clubs worth €75 million, plus €25 million in add-ons.

Liverpool have seen off competition from Manchester United and Arsenal to land the striker.

According to ESPN sources, Nunez is keen for regular Champions League football, which put Liverpool ahead in the race to sign him.

Nunez, who joined Benfica in September 2020, was the top scorer in Portugal’s top flight last season and added some stellar performances in the Champions League, ending the year with 34 goals in 41 appearances.

The striker began his career at Uruguayan side Penarol before moving to Spanish second-division side Almeria in 2019, where he scored 16 goals in 32 games. Almeria will receive 20% of the profit from Nunez’s transfer.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp praised Nunez after his team’s Champions League quarterfinal clash against Benfica in April, saying that Nunez is “really good and has a big career ahead of him.”

Adam Lallana Signs Short-Term Contract Extension with Liverpool

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Adam Lallana is staying put a bit longer…

The 32-year-old English professional soccer player of Spanish descent has signed a short-term deal at Liverpool.

Adam Lallana

Lallana will leave Liverpoolas a free agent at the end of this season after manager Jurgen Kloppsanctioned the contract extension for the midfielder to “finish the job” of delivering the Premier Leaguetitle to Anfield.

Lallana’s contract was due to expire at the end of June, but Liverpool have confirmed that he has now signed a deal that will keep him at the club until the end of the 2019-20 season.

Despite injuries during the latter part of his Liverpool career, Klopp said Lallana, who arrived from Southamptonin June 2014, deserves the chance to share in the club’s imminent title celebrations, with the team needing just six points from nine remaining games to win the league for the first time since 1990.

“I know how highly sought after Adam is in this moment by other clubs who want him for next season, so for him this is a commitment to us and we are very appreciative to him for it,” Klopp told the club’s website.

“This is absolutely how it should be, too, because I am so pleased he will be with us to finish the job this season and have the farewell he deserves so much.

“Adam always puts the club first — always. In the conversations we have had, he has been the first to express that my priority as a manager needs to be the players who are at this club for longer than just the rest of this season.

“He wants to be here to finish the job and do it properly, but it says everything about him that his biggest concern was blocking the progress and opportunity of a player who is under contract for next season also.

“But his role is too important to lose him before this season is done. So, it’s fantastic we can delay our messages of gratitude and good luck until the end of July now.”

Lallana has started just three league games this season, coming on as a substitute on 12 occasions, and said his role is likely to remain as a squad player in the final weeks of the campaign.

“The gaffer has been different class and we’ve had an honest conversation about what my role will be in the remaining weeks,” Lallana said.

“I want to contribute in the most positive way possible that helps him and the team, not just for the remaining matches of this season — but also what they’ll need to consider for next.

“I’m totally at peace with what that looks and feels like, and I know the role I’ll be playing for this team will help in what’s going to be an extraordinary period — the likes of which none of us have ever experienced.

“I feel in my time at Liverpool I’ve always looked to do the right thing for the team, the manager and the club in every decision I’ve made. I think this one fits into that category as well, so I’m buzzing to be seeing out this campaign and hopefully get to celebrate something memorable with an amazing group of people.”