Chelsea were just about to announce £20m signing, deal cancelled as Blues did not trust selling club

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Chelsea had a deal to sign Tyler Adams from Leeds United lined up – but dramatically cancelled the agreement at the last hour.

That is according to The Athletic.

So, why did Chelsea pull the plug on the signing of Tyler Adams? Let’s take a look…

What’s the story?

Well – before Chelsea had signed Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia – the Blues were close to bringing the American to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea had triggered the United States international’s £20m release clause, and – according to the Evening Standard – Adams was scheduled to undergo a medical in west London.

However, the deal eventually collapsed as Chelsea moved for Caicedo and Lavia instead, with The Athletic now going into detail on the developments behind this move breaking down.

It is said that senior figures at Leeds United never truly believed the deal would go through, with some under the impression that Chelsea were using Adams to give Brighton a nudge on their firm Caicedo stance.

However – according to The Athletic – the reason behind Chelsea’s decision to pull out was a concern over how long it would take Adams to recover from a hamstring injury he is currently nursing.

Leeds United’s side felt the 24-year-old would regain full fitness after September’s international break, although there was a belief in Yorkshire that Chelsea felt that date was optimistic, and decided to back out after refusing to trust that timeframe.

The Blues wanted someone who could make an immediate impact following the departures of N’Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

Therefore, the agreement to sign Adams was scrapped in favour of buying Caicedo and Lavia, who are both in the squad to face West Ham later on Sunday.

Adams has since joined Bournemouth.

Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia are far better options for Chelsea than Tyler Adams

We hate to see a footballer messed around like this with his future up in the air, although – with all due respect – nobody can argue that Chelsea have not made the right call here.

Yes, Adams enjoyed a strong debut campaign in the Premier League last season, but he does not boast the world class potential of Caicedo and Lavia, who he is already three and five years older than respectively.

Of course, the American would have been the cheaper option, but we can understand why Chelsea have paid a premium to secure the services of two precocious midfield talents.