West Ham and Everton will be filled with regret after they almost signing the Georgian Messi who destroyed Liverpool for just £13m in January.
It may not be easy to say or spell but the name Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was on everyone’s lips after Liverpool’s humiliating 4-1 defeat to Napoli on Wednesday night.
And the name may have been niggling in the back of the minds of West Ham and Everton fans too.
Kvaratskhelia’s man of the match display against Liverpool is being hailed as ‘dazzling’ and ‘genius’ (GiveMeSport).
The 21-year-old has taken Serie A by storm this season after joining Napoli for just £8m from Dinamo Batumi.
Liverpool fans and Jurgen Klopp found out to their cost just why Kvaratskhelia has been dubbed ‘Kvaradona’.
West Ham and Everton deep regret over failure to seal bargain £13m deal for Georgian Messi who destroyed Liverpool
And those Hammers and Toffees fans who follow the transfer speculation closely are right to remember the name.
West Ham and Everton will be filled with deep regret over their failure to seal a bargain £13m deal for the Georgian Messi who destroyed Liverpool.
An exclusive report back in December ahead of the January window claimed West Ham and Everton were fighting to sign Kvaratskhelia.
The Georgian was at Russian side Rubin Kazan then where he was nicknamed their ‘dazzling tiny dancer’.
According to Football Insider, West Ham boss David Moyes – with head of recruitment Rob Newman just a couple of months in the job – and Everton with Rafa Benitez taking over recruitment responsibility from Michel Brands were in a two-way battle to sign the star.
Both West Ham and Everton made official approaches ahead of the January window claimed the report.
Kvaratskhelia was said to have seriously caught the attention of Moyes and Benitez when he scored both goals in Georgia’s 2-0 win over Sweden the month before.
A “recruitment source” told Football Insider at the time that West Ham had enquired about what it would take to beat Everton to Kvaratskhelia.
And the Hammers were told as little as £13m could seal the deal.
In the end reported doubts over his physicality put paid to a move to West Ham or Everton.
And how both clubs will be regretting that call after watching him dismantle Liverpool in the Champions League.
BBC Sport’s tantalising feature on Kvaratskhelia will be enough to to make Moyes and Everton weep knowing they could have brought him to the Premier League for relative peanuts.
He is being hailed the bargain of the summer across Europe.
And Kvaratskhelia could well have been destroying Liverpool in the claret and blue of West Ham or lighting up the Merseyside derby with Everton instead it seems.
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