Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia aren’t the only players who have, perhaps unwisely, picked Chelsea over Liverpool, one journalist has revealed.
In 2020, Timo Werner was deemed one of Europe’s hottest young prospects. For RB Leipzig, he followed up a 19-goal season by scoring 34 and assisting 13 times as his club finished third in the Bundesliga.
This attracted clubs across Europe, with Liverpool being the most heavily linked. In the end, however, Werner signed for Chelsea, in 2020, for about £50 million.
With just 23 goals scored in 89 matches, Werner then returned to RB Leipzig. He now finds himself back in the Premier League, as Tottenham have just signed the German on loan until the end of the season.
Things could have been very different, though, had the striker opted to join Liverpool in 2020, as journalist Neil Jones revealed.
Writing for Caught Offside, the reporter said: “In 2020, he was very much on the agenda at Liverpool. They tracked him extensively, conducted detailed research into his background and character, and were engaged in a lengthy dialogue with RB Leipzig over a potential deal.
“Chelsea, though, won the argument, convincing the player that he would be a more integral part of their side than at Anfield, where the established front three of (Mo) Salah, (Sadio) Mane and (Roberto) Firmino was still in its pomp, and offering better personal terms in the process.”
Liverpool definitely came out of the saga with the better deal. They landed Diogo Jota instead, who has consistently popped up with goals for the Reds when needed.
Had a 24-year-old Werner bided his time at Liverpool, he could now be in a similar position to the Portuguese.
Jones added: “I think he is a great example of a player whose career could have turned out very differently had he chosen his next move a little more carefully in key moments.”
Despite winning the Champions League, Werner was generally considered a bit of a laughing stock for the chances he missed.
“My personal feeling is that had Werner moved to Merseyside, he would have fitted in far better than he ever did in West London,” the journalist continued.
“I know he won the Champions League with Chelsea, but it is impossible to regard his transfer as a success, given he scored 10 Premier League goals in two seasons there.”
All in all, I think we can consider Werner another player who succumbed to the promise of instant success, instead of signing for Liverpool.
It is a cautionary tale that Lavia and Caicedo clearly didn’t learn from, in our opinion!
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