Arsenal and Manchester United are very much interested in signing Brighton’s Moises Caicedo but according to Fabrizio Romano, the midfielder is more likely to join Chelsea.
The transfer expert is claiming that the Blues have already agreed on personal terms with Caicedo and the only thing now left to do is for them to agree on a transfer fee with Brighton and Hove Albion.
He said on his ‘Here We Go Podcast’: “Direct conversation with Brighton, so more than sending an official bid every day it’s about discussing and trying to find a way together.
“Brighton know that Moises Caicedo wants to go, Brighton know every well since February that Moises Caicedo signed a new deal but he had the green light from Roberto De Zerbi to leave in the summer.
“Let’s say that they will try to find a solution altogether to make this happen. Of course, Caicedo has already said yes to Chelsea. It’s still not agreed between clubs, but could be next week. Let’s see what happens next days. For sure, Chelsea are very convinced by Moises Caicedo. He’s the top target.”
To add to this journalist Rudy Galetti(via Football Talk) is claiming that Chelsea’s new manager is pushing his board to bring in the 21-year-old and the club’s very close to meeting Brighton’s demands.
The Seagulls want nothing less than £100 million for the Ecuadorian and as per Galetti, Chelsea are currently ready to pay £90 million.
Do Arsenal & Man United still stand a chance to sign Moises Caicedo?
Honestly speaking, we don’t see Moises Caicedo joining either Arsenal or Manchester United for two main reasons.
The first and obvious one is that the midfielder is keen to play under Pochettino and he’s already agreed personal terms. Yes, we have seen deals collapse from this point as well but those were when the interested club is not ready to pay.
This is the second reason why Chelsea are not going to miss out because the difference between the two clubs’ demand is only £10 million and that’s not a big thing for Todd Boehly. The new owner spent insane amounts of money back in January and if his new manager wants Moises Caicedo, he won’t shy away from spending an additional £10 million.
Arsenal and Man United might have already given up hope on signing the youngster because both these teams have already spent a considerable amount on a new midfield so they will be reluctant to splurge another £100 million.
Will Caicedo be a good signing for Chelsea?
Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic and Kante have all exited the club this summer which means Enzo Fernandes is the only top-rated midfielder left in the Chelsea squad right now.
Pochettino is very clear that he wants Caicedo to play alongside Enzo next season and if he can keep up his form from last season the 21-year-old will be a top-draw signing.
In just one season, he has caught the attention of some of the biggest EPL sides and on paper, he could be the ideal long-term replacement for N’Golo Kante. During the 22/23 campaign, the defensive midfielder played in 37 Premier League games for Brighton and he managed to make as many as 56 interceptions along with 25 clearances. He also completed 57% of his dribbles attempted and even as a defensive midfielder he created 43 chances.
Arsenal and Man United will definitely feel they have missed out on a great player but they have managed to land Declan Rice and Mason Mount respectively so they won’t be too disappointed. Chelsea, on the other hand, badly need a new central midfielder and Moises Caicedo has all the recipes for success.
