Mauricio Pochettino made a late move to hijack Liverpool’s deal for Alexis Mac Allister but he already had his heart set on a move to the club, according to reports.
The Argentine playmaker, who lifted the World Cup at the end of last year, completed a £35m move from Brighton to Merseyside on Thursday.
Although prices as high as £65m was reported for the midfielder, a release clause in his contract, which was only signed shortly before the Qatar World Cup – allowed him to leave for the low fee.
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Liverpool had a relatively free run at Mac Allister – though thet almost experienced a late hiccup.
According to The Times, Chelsea boss Pochettino made a late swoop for the player before Liverpool managed to rubberstamp the deal.
But by this point Mac Allister had given his word to Liverpool and he was eager to work under Jurgen Klopp, while the club will also be competing in Europe unlike Chelsea.
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Missing out on the Argentine adds to what is already beginning to feel like a frustrating summer for the Blues, who were also gazumped by PSG in the race to sign Manuel Ugarte.
Speaking about his move to Liverpool, Mac Allister told the club’s official website: ‘It feels amazing. It’s a dream come true, it’s amazing to be here and I can’t wait to get started.
‘I wanted to be in [from] the first day of pre-season, so it’s good that everything is done. I’m looking forward to meeting my team-mates.
‘It was a fantastic year for me – World Cup, what we achieved with Brighton – but now it’s time to think about Liverpool and try to be a better player and a better human being every day.’
Mac Allister added: ‘Since I won the World Cup, I said that I want to win more trophies and I think that this club will help me to do that – that’s the aim and when you are in a big club like this one you have to win trophies. So, that’s what I want.
‘Since I arrived here, I can see how big this club is – the players we have, the staff, everyone. I’m really pleased and looking forward to playing for this club.’
