Liverpool transfer failure explained as winger had 'suitcase ready' for move

Cesar Huerta of Pumas reacts during the match against Tigres UANL as part of the Torneo Apertura 2024 Liga MX at Estadio Olimpico Universitario on September 1 2024 in Mexico City
-Credit: (Image: Agustin Cuevas/Getty Images)


Mexico winger Cesar Huerta has claimed he had his "suitcase ready" for a move to Liverpool before the prospective transfer collapsed. Reports in Central America last month had suggested the Reds were considering a move for the 23-year-old, who plays for Pumas UNAM in his homeland.

Mexican broadcaster TUDN claimed Huerta was "very close" to moving to Liverpool in a permanent deal that would have seen the player loaned out to Championship club Sunderland this season before linking up at Anfield next summer.

However, the report suggested the deal was scuppered by Black Cats manager Regis Le Bris vetoing the move, with Huerta instead remaining with UNAM.

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Now the attacker - who plays predominantly on the left wing and is out of contract at the end of the season - has intimated his chance of moving to Liverpool appears to now be over.

"There was an issue," said Huerta, speaking to Spanish news outlet AS after Mexico's 0-0 draw with Canada in Texas on Tuesday. "I had my suitcase ready, but it fell through because of an issue.

“I know that sooner or later, if I keep doing things right, I’ll get the opportunity. I know it's a train that only comes once and I’m focused on Pumas."

Speaking over the weekend, UNAM president Luis Raul Gonzalez Perez explained why a deal to sell Huerta failed to materialise.

“It had nothing to do with the club or his intention," he said. "On the contrary, they recognised the qualities of Huerta.

"External circumstances of the teams themselves meant it could not materialise. I repeat, not because of the quality of Huerta, but because of external circumstances.”

Liverpool eventually bolstered their attacking options before the transfer deadline by signing Federico Chiesa from Juventus for an initial £10million.