Roberto De Zerbi has opened the door for Moises Caicedo to remain at Brighton beyond the January transfer deadline, claiming that ‘there are many solutions’ and that he ‘hopes’ the 21-year-old will stay until the end of the season.
The Ecuadorian midfielder was subject to a £55m bid earlier in the transfer window from the Blues, while Arsenal saw their £60m offer rejected on Friday as they looked to strengthen their midfield ranks in search of a first Premier League trophy since 2004.
It led to Caicedo, who had previously claimed that he was focused on remaining with Brighton until the end of the season, handing in an extraordinary public transfer request on social media, revealing that “I am proud to be able to bring in a record transfer fee for Brighton which would allow them to reinvest it and help the club continue to be successful”.
He has since been told to stay away until after Tuesday’s transfer deadline by the club, and missed training on Saturday as well as being unavailable for selection against Liverpool in the FA Cup.
And, speaking ahead of the clash with Liverpool, Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi admitted that he remained in the dark about what will happen, but that there was a way back for the midfielder should he end up staying on the South Coast.
“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.
Meanwhile, Brighton continue to ‘categorically’ tell interested parties that he is not for sale despite his desire to leave, with the club having reportedly set an astronomical £100m price tag on his head in the final days of the transfer window.
