Southampton director Jason Wilcox has revealed he expects to see Romeo Lavia's move away from the club finalised in the coming days.
Despite significant interest from Liverpool, Lavia is understood to have opted to join Chelsea this summer, following Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo in choosing Stamford Bridge over Anfield.
Wilcox, who expects to see Lavia's move sealed this week, offered fans at the BBC Solent Fans’ Forum an insight into the complicated negotiations with both Liverpool and Chelsea.
"I think you know, it's well known that we've had some significant interest in Romeo, we've had an offer which we accepted from Liverpool," Wilcox began. "Then Chelsea came to the table. So we're currently in negotiation with Chelsea now so it's a real tricky period for Romeo. But I'm confident that something will get done in the next week or so or in the next few days.
"And I think, you know, when we look at what Romeo's achieved here, I think every one of us here wouldn't want to lose him but the reality is, we're in the Championship and we need to reinvest and by buying Shea Charles, we've got another one who hopefully we can do the same with.
"So good luck to Romeo. Let's say it's not done yet. But we envisage in the next few days it will be completed."
READ MORE FROM 90MIN'S TALKING TRANSFERS TEAM
With a move for Lavia almost wrapped up, 90min understands that Chelsea have now turned their attention to concluding a deal for Crystal Palace's Michael Olise.
As for Liverpool, the search for midfield reinforcements continues. Jurgen Klopp has already signed Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai but the surprise departures of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho have left the Reds short.
Leeds United's Tyler Adams is understood to be on Liverpool's radar. Chelsea had been in talks with the United States international but the Blues opted to focus on Caicedo and Lavia instead.
LISTEN NOW TO 90MIN'S TALKING TRANSFERS PODCAST
On this week's edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders is joined by Toby Cudworth, Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss Liverpool's response to losing out on Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, Harry Maguire's Man Utd future and more!
If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
This article was originally published on 90min as Southampton director breaks down Chelsea & Liverpool's battle for Romeo Lavia.