Arsenal and Chelsea 'remain interested' in Caicedo but Romano drops contract bombshell

Robin Bairner

• 4 Mar 2023 04:31 CST
• 3 min read

Moises Caicedo signed a new contract with Brighton on Friday – but it appears that is not going to stop the transfer speculation surrounding a player who was linked with a January move to Arsenal or Chelsea.

The Ecuador international even pushed to leave the Seagulls to join Arsenal in the closing days of the winter transfer market, leading to Brighton asking him to stay away from training for a few days.

Having been given weeks to consider his options, Caicedo has settled upon signing a new contract with Brighton until 2027.

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According to Fabrizio Romano, though, this is not going to stop Arsenal and Chelsea pursuing the 21-year-old into the summer. The transfer specialist reports that both Premier League giants are still following the player, despite the new deal revelation.

Brighton held fast to an asking price of £90 million (€102m) in January, and according to Romano, they will continue to enjoy a great deal of leverage over the player’s future heading into the summer because they have not included a minimum free release clause in the new deal. This leaves the south coast club free to demand any price they wish for the young talent.

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Caicedo’s summer transfer prospects

Arsenal have already shown in the pursuit of Mykhailo Mudryk that they have firm transfer plans. The Gunners have a price in mind for a player and will not go over it.

Admittedly, Chelsea have proven to be a little more fluid in this regard, once again highlighted by the transfer of Mudryk, which they completed for an initial €70m, but with Financial Fair Play pressures and other areas of the team that need to be strengthened, it means their pursuit of Caicedo is surely compromised to some degree.

Similarly, other clubs who might be interested in the player, such as Manchester United and Liverpool, are both in the midst of takeover talks, so it appears unlikely they will be willing to break the bank for the South American.

Expect, then, to hear more noise about his situation going forward, but don’t expected Caicedo to be on the move any time soon.