Championship side turn down Chelsea’s £48m bid for Liverpool target

Southampton turn down Chelsea’s opening bid for Romeo Lavia

Journalist Sacha Tavolieri has claimed Chelsea’s first offer for Romeo Lavia was rejected on Thursday morning. As per the Times (via Express), the Blues’ first offer for the Southampton midfielder did not meet the Saints’ £50 million asking price for their coveted midfielder.

The Blues submitted a £48 million bid, including add-ons for the midfielder, while Liverpool also remain in the race. Their £46 million bid was previously turned down by the Championship side.

The Saints remain confident in their asking price for the midfielder, and if he remains at the club for another season, Manchester City will have the option to trigger a buy-back clause of £45m.

This has seen Chelsea accelerate the signing of Lavia, while the Reds are also hoping to address their defensive midfield problem before both clubs face each other on Sunday. Chelsea are also pursuing Moises Caicedo, and they are finally advancing talks with Brighton & Hove Albion to sign the 21-year-old.

The west Londoners have sold plenty of midfielders in the summer window, including Mateo Kovacic, N’Golo Kante, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Mason Mount. They currently have Conor Gallagher and Enzo Fernandez as first-team players, and Mauricio Pochettino would hence be desperate for the club to add more experience in midfield.

£48 million should be reasonable for Lavia, but the Saints seem to be standing firm on their £50 million asking price. Our top priority should be Caicedo, as the Ecuadorian midfielder is further along the development scale than the Belgian teenager.

He just seems to have more quality and played a huge role in Brighton’s sixth-placed finish last season. But having both would be even better, which is honestly what we need. If not Lavia, we should add another experienced first-team player in this area.

More Chelsea News

• Crystal Palace are set to sign Lewis Hall from Chelsea on a season-long loan
• Chelsea are ramping up their pursuit of Leeds United midfielder Tyler Adams with £20m release clause
• West Ham United are considering a summer swoop for Chelsea striker Armando Broja

As of now, our offer seems to be the highest for Lavia. Hopefully, the Reds don’t make any further bids for the former Manchester City midfielder. If they do, perhaps we should focus on other targets alongside Caicedo. It is good to know the Blues are at least exploring other targets apart from Caicedo, with Brighton making our pursuit long and irritating.