London: Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp on Friday confirmed that his club has come to an agreement with Brighton & Hove Albion to sign Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo.
The deal is worth a reported 110 million pounds ($140 million), which would be a record fee for a transfer in Britain. The fee agreed for Caicedo exceeds the £107m Chelsea paid for Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez earlier this year.
“I can confirm the (Caicedo) deal with the club is agreed, whatever that means in the end. Of course, we want the player and not just the agreement,” Klopp said at a news conference ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League opener at Chelsea on Sunday.
The 21-year-old Caicedo has yet to agree personal terms or undertake a medical examination.
However, several media reports have suggested that the midfielder has been keen to move to Chelsea, who have been unable to agree a fee with Brighton.
Liverpool’s move for Caicedo comes after they lost two midfielders, Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, to clubs from Saudi Arabia, which allowed the Reds to move for Brighton’s Ecuadorian star.
If Liverpool do conclude the deal for Caicedo, the Ecuador international would be their third midfield signing of the summer, after Alexis Mac Allister, also from Brighton, and Dominik Szoboszlai, from RB Leipzig.
–IANS