Chelsea and Brighton at odds over Moises Caicedo valuation

Negotiations between Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion over the transfer of midfielder Moises Caicedo have reached an impasse, with both sides at odds over the player’s valuation.

According to The Guardian, Chelsea have refused to match Brighton’s asking price, with the Seagulls demanding at least £100 million for their Ecuadorian midfielder.

Brighton are driving a hard bargain over Caicedo’s valuation, but Chelsea intend to hold firm during negotiations, with the Blues looking to pay no more than £80m for the youngster.

Although Caicedo is a primary target for the Blues, whose massive squad rebuild is well underway, Chelsea have no appetite to pay above and beyond to capture the services of the Ecuador international.

However, Brighton have the upper hand in negotiations considering Caicedo has four years left on his current deal at the Amex Stadium after penning new terms in January.

Despite assuring the 21-year-old that he can leave this summer if a suitable offer arrives, Brighton are reportedly unwilling to budge on their asking price.

The East Sussex club are using Declan Rice’s impending £105m move from West Ham United to Arsenal as a benchmark to name their price for Caicedo.

Rice is on the cusp of becoming the most expensive British player in history, dethroning Jack Grealish, who set Manchester City back £100m when he moved to the Etihad Stadium two years ago.

The figures involved in Rice’s imminent transfer to Arsenal have caught Brighton’s attention, and it is believed that their demands have caused talks with Chelsea over Caicedo to move slowly this week.

Brighton turned down two bids from Arsenal for Caicedo in January, with the second believed to be around £70m. It will take significantly more than that for the Seagulls to sanction his move to Chelsea this summer.

Brighton have already lost Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool, who recruited the World Cup winner for an eye-catching £35m last month.

They intend to milk every last cent from Caicedo’s possible switch to Chelsea and have so far shown no willingness to reduce their enormous asking price.