The recent transfer of Moises Caicedo has fuelled a dramatic transfer trend that could leave Liverpool behind but the intervention from FIFA could make a difference.
As it’s common knowledge now, Caicedo chose Chelsea over Liverpool even after the Reds bid £110m for him.
Moreover, Brighton agreed to the bid and the Anfield club was prepared to welcome the player for a medical. But the Ecuadorian hesitated and ultimately chose Chelsea.
The London club secured his signing for £115m, which made this the biggest deal of the transfer window. The record deal surpassed Arsenal’s Declan Rice deal and Real Madrid’s Bellingham deal.
FIFA intervention could help Liverpool
Also, as part of the package, Caicedo’s agent banked a fee of £10m as per Football Insider. That equates to about 10 percent of Chelsea’s guaranteed £100m transfer payment.
Though it doesn’t seem like a lot, it has become a part of a wider trend within the game. Also, FIFA has noted the same in its International Transfer Snapshot for the 2023 summer window.
According to the global football governing body, agent fees climbed to an all-time record high of £557m in the summer window, and £684m for the year as a whole. That would be a whopping 36 percent increase on the previous year.
Significantly, FIFA is introducing new regulations around agents at the start of next month, partly aimed at curbing these ‘excessive fees’. And considering FSG’s ‘self-sustaining business model’, Liverpool will hope those rules could make a difference.
Moreover, transfer fees are spiraling themselves, and the associated costs are following suit. For Liverpool, under the current regime at least, this has the effect of putting generational talents virtually out of reach.
A world-class player such as Kylian Mbappe could be out of their reach even though he could be available for free next season.
This is largely due to the agent fees, and expectations of the player which wouldn’t align with Liverpool’s capabilities.
Also, Haaland’s move to Man City was paid through his release clause of £51m. But the additional costs raised the fee potentially to £86m.
Hence, there is no doubt that the new rules would certainly be welcomed by Liverpool and many other clubs.
I’m a football enthusiast and an avid writer and someone who lives by the Bill Shankly quote, on a day to day basis.
