Brighton star Moises Caicedo appears to be favouring a move to Chelsea over Arsenal and Manchester United in the summer transfer window. The 21-year-old has been heavily linked with a switch to all three clubs, having been made available to leave the south coast in the coming weeks.
That's despite the transfer saga in January that saw the Ecuadorian international push for an exit, with interest from both the Blues and the Gunners then. Despite approaches and a willingness to leave from the player, the Seagulls held firm and ended up getting the midfielder to sign a new deal.
While the long-term contract seemingly sealed his future with the club, his manager Roberto De Zerbi insinuated that there would be a transfer this summer. "For sure we will lose some players, maybe [Moises] Caicedo and [Alexis] Mac Allister," the Italian told Sky Sports in May, with the latter already joining Liverpool.
Reports have quoted that a deal in the region of £80million is possible, with Chelsea expected to make a push in the next few days. football.london understands that, while the west Londoners hold an interest in the Ecuadorian, they're hesitant that he could cost roughly £100million.
They may have been handed a boost though as reports previously claimed that Arsenal are no longer in the race to sign Caicedo. football.london understands that at this stage, Declan Rice remains the top priority for the Gunners, who saw an £80million bid rejected for the West Ham captain.
With that in mind, it appears as though it's advantage Chelsea in the race to sign Caicedo as Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg reports that the Ecuadorian international has made his final decision in joining the Blues. While there's no fee agreed, Fabrizio Romano claims that personal terms have significantly advanced between the two parties in the past day.
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With the Blues now actively working on a deal ahead of their competitors, it could be a sign that they're still a force to be reckoned with in the market. The move for Caicedo could prove to be the first major move of the Mauricio Pochettino era, with plenty more work to be done.
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