Chelsea seal signing of 'perfect player' Romeo Lavia but suffer Reece James injury blow

Midfielder completes £53m move from Southampton while new captain ruled out with hamstring problem

Romeo Lavia only has one season and 29 games of Premier League football under his belt. Reuters

Big-spending Chelsea completed the signing of midfielder Romeo Lavia from Southampton on Friday.

The Blues are reported to have forked out £53 million for the 19-year-old, who has played just 29 times in the Premier League, in a deal that could potentially rise to to £58 million.

It is the second time in a week that Chelsea have beaten Premier League rivals Liverpool to the signature of a highly rated midfielder after Brighton's Moises Caicedo chose Stamford Bridge over Anfield in what was a British record fee of £115 million.

“That is about the player's decision,” said Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino, ahead of Sunday's game at West Ham United. “It is their decision if they come here. It wasn't a competition, it was a player's decision to join us.

“That makes us very happy and they talk very highly about our owners and our sporting directors in the way that they work.

“The players wanted to come here because I think they are feeling something special. I hope they are feeling something special.”

Chelsea have now spent more than £350 million during this transfer window once performance-related add-ons are taken into account, with their other summer arrivals including Christopher Nkunku, Axel Disasi and Nicolas Jackson

However, those purchases have neen been significantly offset after a number of players left the club during the same window.

The likes of Kai Havertz, Mason Mount and Mateo Kovacic all joined Premier League clubs, while Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy and N'Golo Kante moved to Saudi Arabia.

On Friday, Pochettino expressed his delight at new signing Lavia – and the backing he was been given by the club's owners to secure the record deal for Caicedo.

“We all know [Lavia], his quality, his profile. I think he is the perfect player for this project. We are excited and we are so happy to add him to the squad.

“The club worked really, really hard [to sign Caicedo]. I have to congratulate the owners and the sporting directors Laurence [Stewart] and Paul [Winstanley] because the deal was amazing.

“To add these type of players like Moises or Romeo and all the players singing, I think it was fantastic work from the club and I think we need to congratulate the job they are doing.”

The announcement of their latest new signing was tempered somewhat by the news that newly-appointed captain Reece James has picked up a hamstring injury that will rule him out for “a few weeks”.

It is the latest setback for England full-back Reece who managed just 16 Premier League appearances last season due to injuries and also missed the World Cup in Qatar.

Chelsea 1 Liverpool 1: Player ratings

CHELSEA RATINGS: Robert Sanchez 7: One of three new players making their chelsea debuts, the former Brighton keeper was beaten all ends up by Salah's curling effort that hit bar and was helpless as Liverpool ripped apart the home defence ahead of Luiz goal. Quiet second half as Liverpool barely threatened. Reuters

Axel Disasi 7: Part of a surprise Chelsea back three and then made an unexpected impact at other end of pitch when he scuffed home debut goal to level scores. Debut to remember for the defender signed from Monaco for nearly £40m. Getty

Thiago Silva 9: Superb game from the veteran. Makes up for lack of pace with perfect positioning and the timing of his tackling is immaculate. His experience will be vital in what is a young Chelsea squad. AFP

Levi Colwill 7: Defender, making his Chelsea debut, had impressive season on loan at Brighton last time out and has forced his way into Pochettino’s plans. Comfortable playing ball out from back and will benefit playing alongside Silva. Reuters

Reece James 8: Chelsea’s new captain crossing was a constant threat and his link-up pay with Sterling down the right first class. Came off with 15 minutes to go with what appeared to be an injury which will be a worry for the Blues. Getty

Enzo Fernandez 7: Good show from Argentine who was given freedom to roam forward in what was probably his best performance in a Chelsea shirt. Still along way to go to justify his £100m-plus price tag, though. Booked in first half after going head-to-head with Jota that also saw Liverpool attacker booked.

Conor Gallagher 7: Given nod in midfield by Pochettino and played in deeper role to allow Fernadez more freedom to attack. Buzzed around from start to finish, snapping at Liverpool heels in middle of park and moved the ball around sensibly. AP

Ben Chilwell 7: Headed assist for Disasi’s opener, then rounded Alisson to finish calmly for Chelsea’s second goal in two first-half minutes - only for his celebrations to be cut short after VAR truled him offside. Shot straight at Becker after poor first touch forced him wide in second half. Getty

Carney Chukwuemeka 7: Teenage midfielder picked up very early booking for high boot on Konate but didn’t let that affect him in solid performance that earned him standing ovation from home fans when brought off in second half. PA

Raheem Sterling 7: Very lively first half as he and James tore down the right flank but influence waned as match went on and annoyed home fans at one point in second half when he passed backwards rather than attacking the Liverpool defence. PA

Nicolas Jackson 7: Promising game from Senegalese new despite shanking one shot wide of target early on and then blazed an even better chance over bar just before break. Caused Liverpool lots and problems, but would have been relieved when handball in own area was ruled accidental after VAR check. Reuters

SUBS: Malo Gusto (On for James 76’) N/A. Getty

Ian Maatsen (On for Chukwuemeka 82’) N/A. Reuters

Mykhailo Mudryk (On for Sterling 82’) N/A.

Leslie Ugochukwu (On for Chilwell 90’) N/A.

LIVERPOOL RATINGS: Alisson Becker 7: Saved well at feet of Jackson after dangerous low cross by James in first half. Brazilian’s pass out from the back started the move for Diaz’s goal. A couple of regulation saves at his near post from Chilwell and Jackson after break. AFP

Trent Alexander-Arnold 7: Wonderful through-ball to Salah saw Egyptian score in first half only for VAR to rule it out. Being latest victime of new time-wasting laws when he was booked for delaying taking a throw-in midway through second half. AFP

Ibrahima Konate 7: One very well-timed sliding challenge to block Fernadez shot in 10th minute and provided his usual usual physical presenece at the back. Stood up well to Chelsea pressure in the second half. PA

Virgil van Dijk 7: Dutchman was solid enough in first game as Liverpool’s new captain after Jordan Henderson’s exit for Saudi Arabia in the face of mounting pressure after break. Curled nice strike over bar at start of second half. Getty

Andrew Robertson 6: Looked isolated in first half as he struggled to deal with James and Sterling’s passing and movement down the Liverpool left. Better after the break, though. EPA

Alexis Mac Allister 6: Argentine World Cup winner started his Liverpool career in the holding role and was solid if unspectacular. Uncharacteristically caught in possession a couple of times and Liverpool are still lacking the sort of midfield security the apparently Chelsea-bound Moises Caicedo would provide. Getty

Dominik Szoboszlai 7: Hungarian glided around the pitch in style in first half and looked like he had been playing in the Premier League for years. Less effective in second as Liverpool lost their attacking momentum but looks like he will be excellent signing. PA

Cody Gakpo 5: Disappointing afternoon for Dutchman who was neat and tidy in possession but never really got foothold in game. Taken off in second half. EPA

Luis Diaz 7: Fine first-time finish to put team in front after fabulous move that went from one end of pitch to other. Turned out to be Liverpool’s only shot on target. EPA

Mohamed Salah 8: Whirlwind first half hour saw him curl shot with weaker right foot against bar, teed-up Dias for opening goal with superb ball and then had fine finish ruled out in tight offside call. Quieter second half but was furious at being substituted with 13 minutes left. EPA

Diogo Jota 6: Bar his shouting match with Fernandez that earned him a booking, the Portuguese was relatively quiet in the opening 45 minutes. Not really much of an impact after the break either and was no shock when he was hooked with 25 minutes to go. AP

Curtis Jones (On for Gapko 66;) 6: Brought on with Chelsea dominating and restricted to helping team hold out defensively. PA

Darwin Nunez (On for Jota 66’) 6: Had shot deflected just wide of Chelsea’s goal in injury-time. PA

Ben Doak (On for Luiz 77’) N/A. Getty Harvey Elliot (On for Salah 77’) N/A.

The 23-year-old was withdrawn in the second half of Chelsea's opening weekend draw with Liverpool but the latest issue arose during training.

“It's a hamstring. It's not a few days, a few weeks maybe,” said Pochettino, who has already lost Nkunku and Wesley Fofana to long-term injuries. “It's a sad moment because he's our captain, he was so excited to be the captain, full of energy.

“We are going to arses him day by day and as soon as possible we want him again with the team. For sure he's going to become stronger than he was because we are going to help him to become stronger than before.”

And Pochettino admitted Chelsea's transfer activity might not be over after missing out on Crystal Palace's Michael Olise with the French winger signing a new deal with the Eagles.

“We are working of course,” Pochettino added. “We're seeing all the options we can manage on the market. I think all the clubs are the same as us.

“In the same time we are keeping eyes on Armando Broja because I think we cannot forget him. We cannot stop him by bringing a profile of player that could stop his evolution. We really believe in him, he can be a really important strike for Chelsea. We need to be careful.”