EXCLUSIVE: Caicedo chooses hefty Chelsea wages over Arsenal transfer

Steve Kay

• Updated: 15 Jun 2023 20:23 BST
• 3 min read

Moises Caicedo is keen on moving to Chelsea due to the financial package the Blues are prepared to offer, FootballTransfers can reveal.

The Brighton star has been one of the Premier League's most sought-after commodities since the winter, but this transfer saga could soon be nearing its conclusion.

We are told that the player is asking for £200,000 per week, which Chelsea are prepared to pay. Another deciding factor is the money offered to Caicedo's agent.

On Tuesday, we reported that the Blues were pushing hard to strike a deal and that they were the more likely to meet the agent's sizeable demands. This is clearly the case, and the agent has been urging his client to pick Stamford Bridge over the Emirates.

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The financial package Chelsea are willing to offer is very attractive indeed to the player; so much so, we hear, that he is not deterred by the fact that Todd Boehly's club will be without European football next season, having finished in an embarrassing 12th place last term.

Nothing has been officially completed, but it appears that Chelsea could very likely win the race for the midfielder, with Arsenal, who had also been working on a deal, focusing on other targets.

The end of the saga

Chelsea's interest in Caicedo dates back to the January window when they battled Arsenal for his signature. The Gunners thought they had a deal sewn up with personal terms agreed, but that proved to be a misjudgement on their part.

Brighton were not prepared to let the player leave and instead tied him down to a new contract. Chelsea refrained from making further official advances after their initial bid was rejected in January.

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Arsenal, meanwhile, thought they could just pick up where they left off in the last window and get a deal for Caicedo done this summer with everything agreed upon in January still in force.

Chelsea, however, have become more bullish in recent weeks and they now hold the advantage, while Arsenal turn all their attention to completing the Declan Rice transfer.