Moises Caicedo has one major fear as details of failed second Arsenal bid emerge and Fabrizio Romano reveals next move
Arsenal are ready to try for a third time to sign Moises Caicedo on Monday after seeing Brighton stand firm and reject their second offer.
The Gunners are pushing to sign the Brighton star before Tuesday’s transfer window closes. Mikel Arteta is desperate to get his hands on the midfielder to boost his squad and maximise their prospects of winning the Premier League title.
As it stands, Arsenal are five points clear on Manchester City at the summit. But they can not afford any slip-ups with Pep Guardiola’s side ready to pounce on any errors.
And with man-in-form Thomas Partey suffering a worrying injury in their FA Cup exit on Friday night, Arsenal’s need for a new midfielder has never been greater.
However, prising Caicedo from the AMEX will be far from easy. They have seen an opening bid worth £60m fall short. And after submitting a second offer to sign the star, Brighton have once again stood firm and resisted. Indeed, trusted reporter Fabrizio Romano claims that the Gunners second bid was worth £70m plus add-ons, in what would have been a club-record deal for Arsenal.
The one thing Arsenal do have in their favour, though, is Caicedo’s stance. The Ecuadorian star has made clear his wish to make the move, begging Brighton’s fans to understand his wish.
Certainly Arsenal will do all they can to make the move go through. And Romano suggests Arsenal are ready to try again with a bid that will not just break Arsenal’s transfer record but also become the joint-fourth most costly Premier League transfer of all time.
Arsenal ready to shatter transfer record for Moises Caicedo
The current Premier League transfer record stands at the £100m Man City paid for Jack Grealish. Romelu Lukaku (£97.5m, Inter to Chelsea) is second, while Paul Pogba’s £89m switch to Man Utd in 2016 is third.
Any deal for Caicedo is likely to come behind the fee United paid for the France star. But the Seagulls are adamant it must match the £80m the Red Devils handed to Leicester for Harry Maguire.
Time is obviously now not on Arsenal’s side, but they will likely push hard to get the deal over the line. As such, a third and potentially final offer is being readied to Brighton on Monday.
Despite their push to sign the 21-year-old, Caicedo himself has one major fear over the proposed transfer.
Per the Daily Mail, Caicedo fears that he could miss out on the blockbuster move altogether if it does not go through before’s Tuesday’s deadline.
And Caicedo fears Arsenal’s priorities may change come the summer if they cannot strike an agreement with Brighton now.
As such, the Gunners are also looking at Declan Rice and Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi as summer options.
The Mail, though, also expects Arsenal to bid again and claims Brighton will sell if offered £80m cash. And that will give both Arsenal and Caicedo hope as Tuesday’s 11pm deadline closes in.
De Zerbi drops Caicedo transfer hint
Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi was asked about the prospects of his move on Sunday. Speaking before his side beat Liverpool 2-1 to reach the FA Cup fifth round, the Italian coach is adamant his side can cope should he leave.
“Moises is a good guy, we will see tomorrow and the next days what happens. We hope he stays with us until the end of the season.
“In life you can make mistake. For everyone there are many solutions. We will see the best solution for him and for us,” he said.
Offering some comments that give Arsenal hope, however, he added: “It’s already difficult for me to be a coach; to be coach and chairman would be too difficult.
“Caicedo is a very good guy. I understand it when you are 21 and the chance of a big team in Europe. But I would like him to finish the season with us.
“(Chairman) Tony Bloom knows very well my opinion. We lost Trossard and if we also lose Caicedo it’s a problem for us if we want to fight for Europe.
“If we don’t lose Caicedo we are ready to fight.”
Arsenal, therefore, will now hope a third offer gets the job done as they ponder meeting Brighton’s £80m valuation.
