Chelsea have seen a £70m ($91.7m) offer for Moises Caicedo rejected by Brighton & Hove Albion.
The offer – which included no awards – was made in writing on Monday and rejected, but Chelsea’s pursuit continues. Previously, a £60m offer for the midfielder was rejected in early June.
Caicedo has flown direct from Ecuador to the US for Brighton’s pre-season tour.
The south coast club are prepared for the possibility of losing Caicedo provided their asking price is met.
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The Athletic reported last month that Brighton were seeking £100million for Caicedo, especially given he signed a new contract in March. Brighton had already rejected overtures from Chelsea and Arsenal in January.
Chelsea are now Caicedo’s main contenders and the 21-year-old remains keen to move to west London after being promised a transfer after January’s interest.
The situation is complicated by Brighton’s desire to sign Chelsea defender Levi Colwill, for whom a £30m offer has already been rejected.
Colwill was on a successful loan at Brighton last season but Chelsea intend to add him to Mauricio Pochettino’s first-team squad for next season, particularly given the injuries to Benoit Badiashile and Wesley Fofana.
However, Brighton remain interested in the England Under-21 international and believe he is open to a return to the Amex Stadium after helping Roberto De Zerbi’s men land via Chelsea and qualify for the Europa League.
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Brighton have already lost fellow midfielder Alexis Mac Allister this summer, with the world champion moving to Liverpool. However, they have already taken steps to bolster that exit with the signings of James Milner and Mahmoud Dahoud on free transfers.
Caicedo made 37 Premier League appearances last season, mostly as a defensive midfielder.
The Ecuador international joined Brighton in 2021 from Independiente del Valle – the same club Chelsea signed Kendry Paez from. Caicedo spent the first half of the 2021–22 season on loan in Belgium with Beerschot before returning to Brighton in January.
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(Photo: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)