On Monday, Sacha Tavolieri stated Liverpool had found an agreement with Southampton to sign Roméo Lavia. Later that day, he said that Chelsea were set to win the race despite the Reds making a new effort.
Sacha Tavolieri again took to Twitter to add that the Blues have ‘reached an agreement in principle’ with the Saints for £50m plus bonuses. The two clubs were sorting out the final details of the operation late on Monday.
The journalist adds Chelsea have booked the 19-year-old’s medical for Tuesday and this would take place after they sort out the final details with Southampton.
Lavia is already in London to carry out the transfer formalities. He’s expected to sign a seven-year deal at Chelsea, with an option for another year.
Chelsea director Joe Shields was the one who signed the player for Manchester City and then at Southampton. Tavolieri says he played a key role as he pushed his superiors to sign the Belgium international.
Shields’ role in this operation is backed up Het Laatste Nieuws. They add Lavia had given his approval to the west London club and is sticking to it despite Liverpool’s late attempt to hijack the deal.
A move to Liverpool would have seen the midfielder enjoy more playing time but his final choice is to join Chelsea. HLN state Mauricio Pochettino’s side will make Lavia’s transfer official ‘possibly today’.
🇧🇪🔵⭐️ Romeo Lavia set TO BE a NEW CHELSEA FC PLAYER !
💰 Agreement in principle reached with #SouthamptonFC on a 50M£ deal + add-ons.
📃 Last details being sorted tonight between clubs, documents needed to be checked and signed as it’s paperwork time and Chelsea wants to get… pic.twitter.com/uFsPvKOw60— Sacha Tavolieri (@sachatavolieri) August 14, 2023
