Chelsea are keen on signing the Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Moises Caicedo this summer.
However, a report from the Guardian claims that Brighton are demanding £100 million for the 21-year-old Ecuador midfielder.
Apparently, Chelsea are unwilling to pay the asking price and they are hoping to sign the player for a fee of around £80 million.
The Blues are in desperate need of central midfield reinforcements, especially after selling four midfielders this summer.
It remains to be seen whether they can bring in the necessary additions before the season starts.
Caicedo was linked with a move away from Brighton during the January transfer window as well but the Seagulls convinced him to stay on and sign a new contract with them.
The player has a long-term deal with them and Brighton are hoping to recoup as much as possible for him.
The Seagulls have already sanctioned the departure of another key midfielder in Alexis Mac Allister, who joined Liverpool earlier this summer.
Caicedo has all the attributes to develop into a world-class midfielder in the coming seasons, and he has already established himself as one of the top-performing midfielders in the league.
There is no doubt that he would improve Chelsea immensely and he could be the ideal long-time replacement for club legend N’Golo Kanté.
The reported £100 million asking price seems quite steep and it remains to be seen whether the Blues can convince Brighton to agree on a compromise.
There is no doubt that the 21-year-old midfielder has the potential to justify a major investment in the long run but Chelsea will still be hoping to sign him for a more reasonable price.
Declan Rice is valued at £104Million, is 3 years older than Caicedo, and is, arguably according to the stats, not as good a player.I wonder if this Chelsea nonsense about “paying too much” would have even been mentioned if Caicedo were Caucasian? Boehly can’t afford him? A deal is staring Pochettino in the face. Chelsea want Caicedo, Brighton want Colwill, who is worth £50M as of now. This would discount Caicedo’ds price to £70M, and allow Colwil to develop his career as a regular starter in a PL side playing in Europe; instead of regularly sittting on the bench.Di Zerbi can also bring Colwill on as a player, whereas at Chelsea , especially if he wants away, he will languish and stagnate.Not good for Dressing Room morale either!