Arsenal and Chelsea boost as Brighton sign Caicedo replacement

Robin Bairner

• 30 Jan 2023 11:24 GMT
• 3 min read

Brighton find themselves in the transfer spotlight in the final days of the window, with their stance over midfielder Moises Caicedo critical to Arsenal but also potentially Chelsea.

Caicedo has been one of the main stories of January, with the Ecuador midfielder wanted by the Blues and subsequently the Gunners, who appear to be leading the race for the 21-year-old, despite having had two offers knocked back.

However, with the Stamford Bridge side still locked in talks with Benfica over Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez, there remains the possibility that they could return for Caicedo in the closing hours of the transfer window if a deal breaks down.

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Brighton have been steadfast in their stance that the player will not be sold, yet a transfer should not be ruled out if a sizeable transfer bid is tabled.

This is particularly the case given that the Seagulls have swooped to sign a player who could act as Caicedo’s replacement at the club.

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Brighton sign Yasin Ayari

According to Fabrizio Romano, Yasin Ayari has been added to Roberto De Zerbi’s squad from AIK for a fee of €6 million, a fraction of the figure that is being bandied about for Caicedo yet typical of the shrewd transfer policy of the south coast club.

No deal has been announced by the Seagulls, yet Romano assures that the move is “done and completed” and involves a contract that runs until 2027.

A 19-year-old, he was one of the outstanding midfielders in Sweden’s Allvenskan last season and would appear to be a natural replacement for Caicedo in terms of his style of play.

Both like to be deployed as box-to-box midfielders but also have the technical abilities to play as a deep-lying playmaker.

The notion that Brighton have signed Ayari as a replacement for Caicedo, then, is an obvious one, but it may be a case of whether he has been added with an eye to the second half of the Premier League season or to the 2023/24 campaign.