The narrative in the summer was that Macallister was good because of Caicedo from pretty much most Brighton fans and with the prices of both, I sort of believed some of that because when watching Brighton, Caicedo was definitely more prominent. Having seen Macca this season play for us, I genuinely think it must have been the other way around, wherein Macca's presence allowed Caicedo to be the destroyer he was last season because fuck me, he is the most intelligent and efficient footballer I've seen play for us. No wasteful touches, economical in possession, his range of passing is a joke and the weight on his passes are always just right. With all that technical ability, he never shies from his work rate and defensive effort. Played as a 6 and was brilliant, now plaing in his natural position and looks even better. Having Endo behind him has unleashed his abilities fully.
Another thing I've only started to notice is that his fist touch is absolutely impeccable, every single time, never too flashy but he kills the ball dead no matter what kind of pass he is receiving. When playing under pressure and being closed down, that kind of technique basically means that he hardly ever loses possession from a knockdown or a bad touch which is the most common turnover in congested midfields. Honestly, I don't know if this even gets tracked in some xtouch or something, but I genuinely think he may have the best first touch in the country.
35 million. An absolute robbery. I suspect we felt bad for Brighton so we helped them rob Chelsea by hiking the price and pressuring them to pay it.
