Paul Barber: Moises Caicedo wanted London and Liverpool snub left Brighton in ‘difficult’ position

Brighton chief Paul Barber admits the club were left in a ‘difficult position’ after Moises Caicedo snubbed Liverpool’s advances.

Caicedo completed a £115million switch to Chelsea on Monday, bringing an end to a summer-long transfer saga.

Caicedo’s £115m move to Chelsea broke the British transfer recordGetty

The Ecuadorian signed an eight-year deal at Stamford Bridge but at one stage, appeared set for a move to Anfield.

Reds boss Jurgen Klopp told reporters on Friday that Liverpool had agreed a £111m deal for Caicedo but the 21-year-old had his sights set on west London.

Managing director Barber admitted Caicedo’s decision left Brighton in a tough spot after days of negotiations with Liverpool.

“First of all Liverpool is a fantastic football club and for any footballer to have the chance to play at Anfield, you would imagine they’d be running up the M6,” Barber exclusively told talkSPORT.

“But it wasn’t to be. Moises and his advisers decided, for whatever reason, that London was their preferred destination for a move and ultimately Chelsea.

“Obviously in that situation we’re in a slightly difficult position because we negotiated a deal, we spent many days working with Liverpool to get a deal agreed and they couldn’t have done any more.”

Barber continued: “Liverpool were superb, professional throughout but it comes down to the player and at that point, we’re very much out of the loop because it’s a discussion between the player and Liverpool and the agent and then ultimately they come to a decision.

“At the point it was clear that he wasn’t going to Liverpool, then we had to go into a different mode, because having negotiated a British-record transfer, we’ve then got to do it again three-days later which is unusual to say the least.

Barber revealed Brighton’s reaction to the sagatalkSPORT

“We started working with Chelsea as soon as we realised Liverpool weren’t able to proceed. We’ve got to protect our own interests – and our interest is the player and making sure we realise the value for that player.

“We’ve done that. Moises now goes onto the next stage of his career. He’s a fine player, he could become one of the best midfielders in the world, he’s got that much potential.

“We’ve done our bit in the progress of our career. We’re onto the next stage, we’ve got a great squad and we’ve got players coming in behind him, which is the model.”

After finalising his move to Chelsea, Caicedo told the club’s official website: “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. It’s a dream come true to be here and I can’t wait to get started with the team.”