Southampton ace was left ‘bemused’ by Liverpool’s pursuit of him and felt he was no longer the club’s choice following the Reds’ £111million move for .
The former midfielder is expected to undergo a medical at Stamford Bridge in the next 48 hours before completing a £60m move to the club.
It’s the second deal in a work that have beaten Liverpool to, following the Blues’ £115m capture of Caicedo from Brighton.
Caicedo rejected a move to Liverpool, despite the Reds agreeing a £111m fee with Brighton for his services.
That move came out of nowhere, and was after Liverpool had three bids rejected by Southampton for Lavia.
Lavia had initially been keen on a move to Anfield but Liverpool’s refusal to meet Southampton’s £50m asking price irked the player’s camp.
After seeing three bids rejected, Liverpool then committed to spending a club record £111m on Caicedo.
Once that deal fell through, Lavia’s mind was made up as he felt he was second choice for Liverpool.
The 21-year-old is now set to join Chelsea, where Mauricio Pochettino has made it clear that he will compete with Caicedo and Enzo Fernandes for a starting berth.
Liverpool are now scrambling to sign a defensive midfielder but time is running out for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
The Reds looked open in their 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Sunday, when Pochettino’s side dominated after a nervous opening 25 minutes.
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