Arsenal’s fresh £70m Caicedo bid rejected by Brighton

Arsenal have had their fresh £70m bid for midfielder Moises Caicedo rejected by Brighton.

Brighton remain adamant that the midfielder is not for sale in January, with the window set to shut on Tuesday at 11pm.

Sky Sports News has been told their position will not change despite two bids from Arsenal in the last week and the player’s own apparent transfer request.

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We take a look at Moises Caicedo’s best bits in the Premier League

Had the Seagulls accepted Arsenal’s latest offer for the 21-year-old it would have been a club-record transfer, surpassing the £60m sale of Marc Cucurella to Chelsea in the summer.

The Gunners also had their initial £60m offer for Caicedo rejected, which prompted the Colombia international to plead with Brighton to let him leave and join the Premier League leaders in a statement on social media.

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The Soccer Saturday team have their say on Moises Caicedo’s potential transfer to Arsenal and analyse his best moments in a Brighton shirt

Caicedo, who said to Brighton’s official website that he was focused solely on his current club just last week, was told to stay away from training with the Seagulls until after Tuesday’s transfer deadline following his Instagram post.

Leandro Trossard has already swapped Brighton for Arsenal in the current window in a deal worth £27m.

Arsenal are in the market for a new midfielder due to concerns about squad depth, a suspected long-term injury to Mohamed Elneny and a new fitness worry over Thomas Partey who was replaced at half-time during Friday’s FA Cup defeat at Manchester City.

De Zerbi: Brighton ready to go forward without Caicedo

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Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi insists that Moises Caicedo is a ‘very good guy’, but says it was a ‘mistake’ for the midfielder to publically state his desire to leave the club

Brighton head coach Roberto De Zerbi wants Caicedo to stay at Brighton until the end of the season but says the club are “ready to go forward without him”.

“Caicedo is a very good guy and I can understand him,” said De Zerbi after Sunday’s last-gasp FA Cup fourth-round win over Liverpool.

“When you are 21 and you receive the request of a big team, they are playing in European competition, I can understand.”

Asked if he was surprised by Caicedo’s social media post, De Zerbi added: Yes, yes I was. I’m not sure if it was him if you know what I mean…”

Pressed on if he thought Caicedo had been influenced by others, De Zerbi said: “Yes, I think so.”

What did Caicedo’s Instagram post say?

Caicedo’s Instagram post read: “I am grateful to Mr Bloom and Brighton for giving me the chance to come to the Premier League and I feel I have always done my best for them. I always play football with a smile and with heart.

“I am the youngest of 10 siblings from a poor upbringing in Santa Domingo in Ecuador. My dream always to be the most decorated player in the history of Ecuador.

“I am proud to be able to bring in a record transfer fee for Brighton which would allow them to reinvest it and help the club continue to be successful.

“The fans have taken me into their hearts and they will always be in my heart so I hope they can understand why I want to take up this magnificent opportunity.”

Caicedo said on Brighton’s official website earlier this week that he was focused solely on his current club.

Trossard has already swapped Brighton for Arsenal in the current window in a deal worth a £27m, but Brighton are determined to keep hold of Caicedo.

At just 21, Caceido also offers a long-term solution and investment and would drop the Gunners’ league-low average age even lower. But he has experience, too – collecting 28 senior caps for his nation and impressing at the World Cup in Qatar.

Some may baulk at the proposed fee, but Caicedo provides serious midfield mettle and scope for development, while his remaining deal at the AMEX, a soaring transfer market and growing competition for transfer targets nudges prices ever higher.

Why is Moises Caicedo in demand?

The Brighton midfielder’s primary strengths include general distribution, creating chances and winning duels.

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Caicedo also provides box-to-box qualities from a typical No 6 role, patrolling the left-of-centre in defensive and opposition halves in almost equal measure.

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He has attempted only two shots from inside the box in the Premier League this term and is far more inclined to strike from outside the area – hitting the target three times from 10 long-range attempts.

In terms of creating chances, Caicedo frequently penetrates opposition lines with threaded passes in central areas but has also found team-mates from wide areas.

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The graphic below highlights how Caicedo’s passes are primarily made down the central and left-hand thirds and underlines his box-to-box influence, while the passing direction radar reveals an impressive accuracy and progressive vision – with barely any passes angled back towards his own goal.

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He is also cool under pressure, with only two team-mates recording a better ball-retention rate when being hunted down by opposition players, and is also the key component in Brighton’s transition phases, according to Second Spectrum data.

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Follow the January transfer window with Sky Sports

Who will be on the move this winter? The January transfer window closes at 11pm in England and midnight in Scotland on Tuesday January 31, 2023.

Keep up-to-date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports’ digital platforms. You can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News.

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