Moises Caicedo admits one phone call convinced him to join Chelsea over Liverpool

Moises Caicedo has revealed that a single phone call helped convince him to join Chelsea instead of Liverpool during the summer.

The Ecuadorian joined the Blues for £115m in the last transfer window but was subject to a tug-of-war between Chelsea and Liverpool for his signature.

Despite Chelsea having been linked with Caicedo throughout the summer, Liverpool tabled a late £111m bid for the 22-year-old which his former side Brighton accepted. However, the midfielder rejected the Reds in favour of a move to Stamford Bridge.

Caicedo's agent, Manuel Sierra, had previously spoken about the player's decision to join Chelsea, insisting that he and his client had agreed that, providing the Blues could match any other club's offer, his priority would always be to make the move to the west London side.

However, the former Brighton man has admitted there is another reason he was convinced to join the Blues, partially owing his move to a phone call with Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez.

Fernandez has previously revealed that he did indeed have a chat with the Ecuadorian in a bid to convince him to make a Chelsea move, with Caicedo citing it as an important factor in his decision.

Caicedo stated (via 90min): "It was a nice chat [with Fernandez]. I mean, the fact that a world champion was phoning you, one of the best midfielders in the world... receiving that call was very nice and he convinced me to come here.

"He said it was a great club, that there are many young players, there was a togetherness here. I have always enjoyed the bond in a team because I think that, if there is that bond, we can deal with any situation we may face: pressure, everything. So, that's what motivated me to come here."

He added: "Now, I'm enjoying playing alongside him, in training as well, in rondos. We are always together. So, I'm very happy and I'm trying to do things better every day, as Enzo said, to be a good example for everyone at the club."

Despite a nightmare debut against West Ham United, Caicedo has since settled at Stamford Bridge and is beginning to show why Chelsea splashed a British record fee on the youngster.

Meanwhile, Liverpool are still lacking an out-and-out defensive midfielder, with Caicedo's former teammate Alexis Mac Allister filling in at No. 6. The Argentine, who won the World Cup alongside Fernandez in 2022, has shared minutes with Wataru Endo, neither of whom have entirely convinced in the holding role.

Liverpool have been linked with another South American, Andre Trindade, in the January transfer window, although some reports have denied the Reds' interest in Fluminense's recent Copa Libertadores winner.

With Jurgen Klopp still short a defensive midfielder, perhaps he could have done with Mac Allister picking up the phone and giving Caicedo a call in the summer.