Brighton and Hove Albion have reportedly ‘accepted’ that Moises Caicedo will leave but one thing stands in the way of a move to Chelsea.
The Ecuador international is considered to be one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League and the Blues have had him on their radar for some time.
It’s no secret that Mauricio Pochettino is looking to add midfielders to his squad, after losing the likes of Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, N’Golo Kante and Ruben Loftus-Cheek this summer.
This leaves Chelsea with just Conor Gallagher and Enzo Fernandez to choose from as central midfielders so clearly Pochettino will need to bring in support for them.
As previously reported by Football365, the Blues’ reported interest in Caicedo is ‘concrete,’ although he also has admirers at Manchester United.
Last season, the 21-year-old made 37 Premier League appearances for Brighton. Caicedo played a key role in helping the Seagulls achieve a sixth-place finish – the highest in their entire history.
As mentioned, the Ecuadorian’s best attributes are at protecting his team’s defence. Last term, he made an average of 2.7 tackles per game, as well as 1.5 interceptions.
This puts him amongst the highest ranked defensive midfielders in Europe so it’s no surprise to see Chelsea chasing Caicedo.
Now, according to transfer journalist Graeme Bailey, Caicedo is Chelsea’s top summer target. However, one thing is still a big ‘concern’ for the Blues.
Speaking to TEAMtalk, Bailey said: “I am told that Caicedo is very much Chelsea’s number one target as it stands as they look to bolster their midfield having seen the likes of Kante, Kovacic, Loftus-Cheek and Mount all depart.
“It is my understanding that Caicedo is pushing for the move to Chelsea, the chance to work with Mauricio Pochettino is clearly something that appeals to him.
“Caicedo signed his new deal in March, but Brighton have accepted that he can leave this summer.
“Caicedo’s only real concern is the price-tag, but he knows they are within their rights to ask for what they want and the fact is they see him in the Declan Rice range of £100m.
“It remains to be seen if Chelsea or anyone else will go that high.”
Declan Rice is expected to join Arsenal for a fee of £105m this summer, which as suggested by Bailey could inflate the price of other in-demand midfielders, like Caicedo.
For that reason, Brighton have slapped a price tag of £100m on the youngster. This means that Chelsea may have to stump up another huge fee – like they did with Enzo Fernandez – to get a deal done.
Whether or not Pochettino is willing to sanction such a big purchase is still unclear, but the Blues still hold the most concrete interest in Caicedo.
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