Chelsea are lacking numbers in midfield after selling Mason Mount to Manchester United, Mateo Kovacic to Manchester City, Ruben Loftus-Cheek to AC Milan, N’Golo Kanté to Ittihad Club while releasing Tiemoué Bakayoko. Therefore, Mauricio Pochettino is expected to sign at least one replacement for the five that left over the summer.
The Blues brought in Lesley Ugochukwu to accompany Enzo Fernández, Andrey Santos and Conor Gallagher, but Moises Caicedo has long been a target after impressing at Brighton & Hove Albion last season. Chelsea have fallen short of matching his valuation, however, and Brighton aren’t expecting the 21-year-old to leave now, according to Simon Stone of BBC Sport.
Caicedo joined the Seagulls from Independiente for £4.5m in 2021, but his club are requesting £100m two years later. Brighton have rejected bids of £70m and £80m from Chelsea, so it’s clear they’re not budging on their demands. Stone of the BBC claims that Brighton don’t expect any club to meet their asking price so they expect Caicedo to remain at the club this summer.
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The Ecuadorian international has made 53 appearances in all competitions for Brighton, scoring two goals with three assists. Caicedo was one of the Premier League’s best defensive-midfielders last season, sitting 7th in the table for most tackles per game (2.7) and 8th for more interceptions per game (1.5). Like the rest of Chelsea’s midfield, Caicedo is young with a lot of potential.
He has four more years on his contract at Brighton, however, so the Seagulls aren’t obligated to cash in. And with Europa League football sealed for the 2023/24 campaign, Caicedo will be playing in Europe if he stays but not if he moved to Stamford Bridge – Chelsea finished 12th in the league last season.
So with the Blues having two bids kicked back and being told to pay nine figures for Caicedo, they might opt for another midfield target. Southampton’s Romeo Lavia might be a more affordable option, though he’s also a very young player.
