Exclusive interview with Chelsea star Moises Caicedo by Camel Live.
At Chelsea, it is widely believed that there is no better player than this smiling 24-year-old defensive midfielder from Ecuador.
However, Caicedo himself holds a different view.
“Are you the best player in your position?”
“No,” he replied simply when asked.
“Who is better then?”
“So many. I don’t want to tell the world I’m the best because that’s not true. In my opinion, I’ve reached my best form, you know what I mean? Saying you’re the world’s best is completely different from others saying it.
There are many excellent players in my position. I’ve been doing my best. But I need to show more because I think I can do better. With goals and assists, I can feel it.”
He patted his stomach as he spoke, continuing:“I know my position is to help the center-backs, but I can do more.”
Changing the subject, Caicedo asked us a question.
“Did you watch the game against Tottenham Hotspur?”
Of course we did—Spence tried to dribble arrogantly, Caicedo won the ball, then pressed Harvey Simmons into a misplaced back pass, before tackling Micky van de Ven and assisting Joao Pedro with the only goal of the game.
“I believed I could win the ball back, and I did, then I got an assist. I can do that every game. I believe in myself, and I definitely can.”
We asked Caicedo about Declan Rice for two reasons: first, we love watching midfield battles in English football, and second, we have been craving a real showdown since the days of Roy Keane vs Patrick Vieira.
Caicedo told us he heard what Rice said after Arsenal’s Champions League win over Bayern Munich. Rice voted for him in last season’s PFA Team of the Year and praised him as “excellent.”
“Declan, everyone knows how good he is. The duel between him and me will be fantastic. It feels great, very special—like he said, we play different positions.
People always compare me to him, but I’m happy he’s doing well now. I love watching him play because he’s really good. I want to face the best defensive and attacking midfielders in the world, and he’s one of them. I’m looking forward to it.
It’s good that people compare us, but there’s no rivalry between us. He wants to perform well, and I’m ready to give my all. I’m prepared, everyone is prepared. I’m looking forward to the upcoming games.”
Caicedo is a devout believer, and his favorite Bible verse is Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
He lives by these words, as he explained when talking about critics:“If I said it wasn’t hard, I’d be lying. It’s hard because I want to tell them it takes time, but I’d rather take action than be all talk.”
Caicedo believes it was fate that he ultimately joined Chelsea rather than Sunday’s opponents.
“Everything happens for a reason,” he said of nearly joining Arsenal before choosing Chelsea. “I was almost there, but now I’m here and I’m very happy. The timing was perfect.
I waited until Chelsea came for me. People laughed at me, said I chose the wrong place, but sometimes you need time to adapt to a big club. I needed time.
I want to give everything for this club because they never doubted me. I chose Chelsea because they have ambition. I want to win trophies—win more trophies with this club.”
“Do you think you can win the Premier League and Champions League here?”
“Absolutely. The time is right. We’re moving in the right direction, we want to keep this momentum going, and we will definitely achieve our goals.”
Caicedo also rejected a £111 million offer from Liverpool to join Chelsea. Chelsea’s co-sports director is Paul Winstanley, who was previously Brighton’s head of scouting—he was the one who helped Caicedo move from Independiente del Valle in Ecuador to England.
“I never doubted it; I’ve always been a blue,” Caicedo said.
