When the South American media speaks about their players who have been succeeding for big clubs in Europe, the stories normally highlight the tough path to do well at such a high level.
However, as we today get to see Ecuadorian outlet El Universo speaking about Moises Caicedo’s arrival at Chelsea, they completely criticise the price for this transfer.
The newspaper goes heavy on the midfielder, claiming he’s an average player, and saying ‘it’s a mystery’ how Chelsea spent €116m on his signing.
“One hundred and forty-six million (dollars) is a crazy sum for a midfielder who is a midfielder with no goal, no header, no mid-range shot, no dribbling, who does not enter the box and whose characteristic is not exactly the creation of play. It sounds strange, to say the least, that a club has agreed to pay such a huge sum for a football worker. What is behind this operation…?” says the outlet.
It’s recalled that Caicedo was valued by Transfermarkt at €75m by the time Chelsea spent all that money on his signing, and the outlet tries to find out what convinced the Blues to overpay for him that way.
They even mention that other players such as Jude Bellingham, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane cost less, while Chelsea have been spending crazy sums on other signings, such as Enzo Fernandez.
The Ecuadorian media used to speak about the midfielder as a national hero, given that he’d been doing great for club and country, and now they wonder who’s ‘lying’ about his big transfer to Chelsea.In fact, they add that even Todd Boehly and his lack of experience in football shouldn’t have agreed to this ‘madness’.
“A player who hardly ever gets into scoring position cannot be priced above great strikers. When you pay $146m for a player you expect him, if not to be a genius, at least to have a minimally adequate performance. And Moses has not had that so far.
“Not only does he not contribute offensively, he is often defecating in defence, losing balls that cost goals and showing a certain sluggishness in marking. Many blame Mauricio Pochettino, who is not an honorary doctor in coaching, and surely has his fair share of the blame for Chelsea’s poor campaign. Yet the manager gives Caicedo his full backing, always fielding him and justifying everything. And Pochettino did not suggest paying $146m for him,” they say.
