Report: How Chelsea failed to sign young midfielder now playing on Merseyside

How Chelsea were beaten by Liverpool for the signing of Steven Bajcetic

According to a report in Sun (h/t Mirror), Chelsea were beaten by their rivals Liverpool for the signature of young midfielder Stefan Bajcetic from Celta Vigo in December 2020 before the Brexit rules would have made this transfer impossible.

Chelsea and Manchester United were interested in the young prodigy, but they were put off due to fears that the player won’t be allowed to enter the United Kingdom due to Brexit.

The EU rules for British clubs to sign players from abroad of age 18 and under were put into practice on 1st January 2021. Liverpool acted quickly and completed the Bajcetic transfer a month before that. They paid £225,000 to get this deal over the line.

The Spanish U-18 international eventually arrived in Merseyside in June 2021. His performances previously were liked by the scouts of not just the Reds, but Chelsea and United as well.

It has turned out to be a good move for Liverpool. Bajcetic had an impressive 2022 pre-season, played a few minutes against Bournemouth in the Premier League and has attracted the eye of many around the Kirkby training ground.

A missed opportunity

Revelations are also coming that the player is developing quicker than the long-term vision coaches had for him. So much so that he is now an option to play in midfield for the first team, making the bench for most league games.

Chelsea, who spent quite a bit of money on signing young players this summer, would feel this was a missed opportunity to sign a talented youngster.

Bajcetic is a rare talent who has charisma on the ball, can dominate games physically and has a great sense for the space on the field. Probably an ideal midfielder who has the potential to become something special.

It would have been better if the Blues had broken the neck that time and signed this kid. Nevertheless, we ended up with two young midfielders this summer.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea and Manchester United line up a move for Wolves recruitment chief Matt Hobbs
• Raphinha explains the reason behind rejecting a move to Chelsea in favour of Barcelona
• Thomas Tuchel advised Chelsea starlet Billy Gilmour to join Graham Potter’s Brighton in the summer

The Blues acquired the services of Carney Chukwuemeka from Aston Villa and Cesare Casadei from Inter Milan. However, it remains to be seen when the duo get their shot at making an impression with our first team.