Brighton and Hove Albion news: Caicedo to Chelsea? Who is coming in for the Seagulls? How are the new signings looking?
SussexWorld reporters Jacob Panons and Frankie Elliot have discussed all the latest from Brighton and Hove Albion including Moisés Caicedo's proposed move to Chelsea and who may be joining Roberto De Zerbi's men this transfer window.
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00:00 Hiya, today I am with Frankie Elliott, our sports reporter, and we're going to be talking about
00:04 Brighton Hove Albion in this sports special. In the first half, we're going to be talking about
00:08 their pre-season friendly against Chelsea and how some of the new players have been integrating. So,
00:12 Frankie, what did you make of that friendly against Chelsea the other day?
00:15 Well, it was certainly entertaining. Seven goals, a red card, a team they have no love lost for,
00:22 a team in Chelsea that they have tried to sign. One of their players, Levi Colwell,
00:27 who was on loan at Brighton last year, was playing for Chelsea in this friendly despite
00:31 links with him moving back to the south coast. And also, of course, Moises Quesada, the Brighton
00:36 midfielder, who has been linked with Chelsea throughout this summer, he was not involved at
00:42 all. So it's a club with a lot of history, obviously Graeme Potter and Marco Curella,
00:45 two of Brighton's head coach and Brighton's best player, left to join Chelsea last season as well.
00:51 So there's been a lot of to and fro between the two teams and you could tell that had spoiled
00:56 onto the pitch because it was a very aggressive friendly with lots going on, lots of big tackles
01:00 going in for what should be a non-competitive game. But certainly signs that Brighton can still
01:06 compete with the big boys going into next season because they put in a really, really good
01:10 performance against a very strong Chelsea team. And the fact that it did kind of spoil over and
01:14 you could see that passion and that emotion with the players, do you see that as quite a good thing
01:17 that they're still, despite it being a friendly and despite they've got a lot of games coming up
01:21 this season, they still had that fire to keep going and to, you know, sort of prove a point
01:24 to Chelsea as well considering their history? Absolutely. I think De Zerbis has always spoken
01:29 about the fact the mentality of the squad needs to be that of an elite club and I think playing
01:34 like that in a game, in a friendly game, shows that they have, he has installed that really well.
01:40 He doesn't, they're not taking it as a just a fitness exercise, they're not taking it as an
01:45 opportunity just to stretch out their legs. They're seeing it as an opportunity to get one
01:48 over a team that they feel they want to be competing with again next year. And I have to say,
01:53 you know, they were down to 10 men for most of the second half and went down to 4-1 down as well
01:58 with about 15 minutes to play and most teams in that situation, given the circumstances that it's
02:03 a pre-season game, would just sort of keel over and say, 'Okay, we'll take the beating here,
02:08 we'll take the drubbing because it doesn't matter.' But Brighton refused to do that, scored
02:12 two late goals and could have easily got an equaliser as well despite the one-man advantage
02:17 for Chelsea. And yeah, that shows real character and a real great sign for what's to come this
02:23 season. And a couple of players were making their debut for Brighton. What did you make
02:28 of some of their performances? De Bruggen, De Hood, Pedro, what did you think of them?
02:32 Yeah, no, there were some really strong showings. For De Hood, he started the game and obviously
02:37 that's a big role he's taking, he's sort of coming into that as the replacement for Alexis
02:42 McAllister, who was so brilliant in Brighton's midfield last year. But he looked like he
02:46 slotted in really well, really obviously technically proficient. So his passing looked really good,
02:50 his slick passing, picking the ball up from the back line and moving it into the forwards
02:55 line would ease passing the ball with both feet. And looked to take up some really nice
02:59 positions as well and looked very controlled, keeping the tempo ticking for Brighton. So
03:04 he looks like he's been a good addition. Gyal Pedra came on in the second half and he looked
03:08 excellent. He looked like a real threat to the Chelsea back line. Every time he picked
03:12 up the ball, he's very quick, he's got very good close control dribbling and he won the
03:17 penalty with about 15 minutes to go and obviously scored that penalty as well. So he's got his
03:21 first Brighton goal and then also provided a lovely assist, again taking on a number
03:26 of Chelsea players on that left-hand side and provided the assist for Denis Undav's
03:30 goal, which was the third goal for Brighton. So those two looked great. De Bruggen also
03:34 played 45 minutes as well, it's good to see him and see what he was about. He obviously
03:39 came in and did that goalkeeping role excellently as playing with the ball at his feet as well
03:43 as being the classic shot-stopper. And there was also some opportunities for some younger
03:47 players as well. Jack Hinslewood, the 18-year-old youth team prospect, he played it right back
03:52 and impressed a number of people. De Zerby was impressed by his performance. Adam Lallana,
03:56 the experienced midfielder in the Albion squad, he said he looked right at home against Premier
04:01 League opposition. So there's some really good signs going forward for some new players
04:04 coming to this Brighton squad. And obviously going into the Europa League campaign next
04:08 season, more games at hand, how important is it that these younger players do step up?
04:12 And it might only be 15 minutes here and 15 minutes there, but how important is it that
04:16 they take those opportunities and they fit in to fill in those gaps? Brighton could probably
04:20 do with a couple of players as well, how important is it that they fill those gaps?
04:24 Oh, it's vital. I think if you look at any squad, even the best squads in the world,
04:28 you look at Manchester City for instance, you'll see a number of youth team prospects
04:31 on the bench for Champions League games, League Cup games, FA Cup games, either starting them
04:37 or coming on for the last 15-20 minutes. And it's vital that they can rely on those players
04:41 because obviously it's a cost-effective way of filling up your squad. It's also a good way of
04:45 giving these young players experience. It's also important to the team because it gives those key
04:50 players a rest for the, you know, 20 minutes doesn't seem like long, but in a highly competitive
04:55 game where it's a very physically demanding game, as we know, at the highest level, to have those
04:59 moments where you can take off your players and put on a youth team player who can not disrupt
05:04 the game too much is vital. So the signs are there, there's a couple there in the Brighton squad that
05:09 could do that role. Jack Hemswood, as I said, looks like one, Ed Turns looks like another.
05:14 Whether they would prefer to go out on loan and play more first team football is yet to be seen,
05:19 but an opportunity is definitely there for some European experience, for some domestic experience
05:24 as well and some Premier League experience, which can't be turned down because that'd be great for
05:28 those young boys. And obviously going back to some of the new signings, how Pedro played,
05:32 you know, Brighton's most expensive ever transfer. What did you, do you think he's worth the money?
05:36 Do you think this is the marquee signing that Brighton needed this summer? Yeah, it looks like
05:40 it could be the real deal. I think there are some question marks about spending 30 million on a
05:46 player that had never really proven it at Premier League level. He had been a good player for Watford
05:50 in the Championship, but to spend 30 million on someone that's not really scored many goals in
05:54 the Premier League, that raises some questions. But from what we saw on Saturday and what we have
05:58 seen as well with him in the Championship, he looks like he could be a real threat to many teams
06:03 and bolsters that attacking line for Brighton because at the end of last season, we saw a
06:08 number of those players start to just drift off because of the amount of games they were playing
06:11 in such quick succession. Matoma was one of Brighton's best players at the start of last
06:15 season, but he lost his form towards the last three months. So to have someone like Pedro that
06:20 can slot in as either a striker to support Evan Ferguson or Danny Welbeck or even to play out from
06:25 the left, so to give Matoma a run for his money is a real benefit. And like I said, it creates
06:32 competition, which is always good in elite squads, but it also gives an opportunity for if there are
06:37 people out of form or need a rest, he can come in and make the difference as well. So I really hope
06:42 he can be a star player for Brighton going into next season. Thanks, Frankie. That's everything
06:47 from us in part one. Make sure you tune into part two as we'll be talking about some of the players
06:52 who might be coming in and going out of Brighton this summer.
06:56 [Music]
07:09 [Music]
07:35 Hello and welcome back to part two of Latest TV News. I've got Frankie Elliott with me here
07:40 and we're going to be talking about some of the players who might be coming in and going out of
07:44 Brighton and Hove Albion this summer. So Frankie, the name that everyone's talking about across
07:48 the footballing world right now is Moises Caicedo. What's happening there? So from what we can
07:53 understand, Chelsea are the only real contenders to sign Moises Caicedo, who does want to leave
07:59 Brighton. They've had two bids so far, Brighton from Chelsea for Caicedo, the latest one being
08:05 around £70 million. The first one I believe was about £60 odd million. This is nowhere near
08:11 Brighton's valuation of Caicedo, so they were both rejected. Brighton see Caicedo to be worth around
08:16 £100 million. This is because of the recent sale of Declan Rice, the West Ham captain, for around
08:22 £106 million to Arsenal. Brighton believe Caicedo is as good, if not better, than Declan Rice,
08:29 pointing to the fact that he's also a number of years younger than the England international. So
08:35 they believe around £100 million for Caicedo is what they deserve. So talks are still ongoing
08:39 between Chelsea and Brighton. I don't think many people expect it to be £100 million for the
08:44 eventual transfer because Caicedo, his camp, is wanting this deal to be completed quickly.
08:49 Obviously pre-season has already started and they want him to be working with the new Chelsea boss
08:53 Mauricio Pochettino as quickly as possible. So a deal we believe is going to be completed this
09:01 week. I'd imagine it'd be around £85 to £95 million, so not far away from the £100 million
09:07 valuation they have of Caicedo and certainly a big profit from the £4 million they spent on to bring
09:13 him in in 2021. But yeah, it has taken longer than Caicedo would have wanted and probably
09:20 Brighton and Chelsea would have wanted as well. But this is due to the difference in opinions
09:24 on how much Caicedo is worth. But we are close to reaching a deal, we believe.
09:28 And obviously Brighton have already made a few signings, but they're getting this £80 to £100
09:32 million. It opens a lot of doors for them financially. What positions do you think
09:37 they should enhance with that money and what players specifically do you think they could
09:40 come in to not only replace Caicedo but improve the team with that extra money?
09:43 Yeah, so Brighton have never been one to be gun-ho with any money they've accumulated from
09:47 transfers. Obviously we've seen a number of players leave for big money moves in recent years.
09:52 And that's just been spread around the squad well by getting players that are still of that
09:58 sort of bracket of emerging talents, but snapping them up for cheap prices, but in a number of
10:04 different positions. I imagine Brighton will continue to do that. However, Roberto De Zerbi,
10:09 the Brighton manager, said on Saturday following their pre-season game with Chelsea, he was
10:13 obviously asked a lot about Caicedo and he was very adamant they need to find someone of Caicedo's
10:18 quality to replace him if he is sold because of their quest in the Europa League this year.
10:23 Whether they are willing to spend that amount of money, so we would imagine someone of Caicedo's
10:29 quality, we are saying someone that is in the £40 to £50 million region, that would break
10:34 Brighton's transfer record fee. So whether they jump the gun so quickly and spend the money
10:40 straight away is yet to be seen. I'm sure that's what De Zerbi would want. I don't think the board
10:44 would be willing to do that. They already have a number of midfield options this season due to
10:48 Steven Alzate returning from loan, James Milner being signed and Mahoud Dehoud also being signed
10:54 as well. So they've actually got a number of midfielders already at the club, but not probably
10:59 to the same level as Caicedo. So there's a bit of discrepancy about what the manager wants,
11:03 maybe what the club wants. So it will be interesting to see how the money is used.
11:06 Moises Caicedo plays a really, really unique role in that holding field where he's quite active,
11:12 he can move around quite easily. For example, you've compared him to the Declan Rice transfer,
11:16 and Declan Rice is a player who plays a similar position but plays a very,
11:21 very different role. How difficult do you think it's going to be to replace a player like Caicedo?
11:25 Very, very difficult. When they say they want to find someone of Caicedo's quality,
11:29 I don't think they'll be able to do that. He's sort of a once in a blue moon player,
11:33 just for the fact that he is so good at the defensive side of the game, very much the
11:38 Angolo-Kante stuff of breaking up play. His tackling is immaculate and his reading of the
11:43 game is brilliant. So he has all those qualities, plus the fact he's very good on the ball,
11:47 his energy levels and athleticism is excellent. He's basically the all-round midfielder,
11:51 a ball-winning midfielder, but also a box-to-box and a bit of a playmaker as well. So he's got all
11:56 those qualities which are very, very difficult to find and hence why they value him so highly
12:01 at the club and also why teams like Chelsea are wanting to sign him. So the next player that
12:06 comes in for the money that they get from Caicedo has got big shoes to fill and is very,
12:10 very unlikely to fill them. So it's not a case of signing someone like Caicedo,
12:15 because I don't think that's possible, but maybe a player who has got one of those qualities but
12:20 excels at it and maybe with a bit more experience than Caicedo, who's only 21,
12:25 may be the best way to go about it because it's very difficult to find someone like that again
12:29 in Brighton's price range anyway. And we've just spoken about Brighton not wanting to rush,
12:33 you know, they don't want to pull that trigger before they're absolutely certain that they want
12:36 that player on their team. But I guess you've got the issue of West Ham also looking for a player
12:40 in the same position. You know, West Ham also competing in the Europa League next season. Do
12:45 you think that might spur Brighton on to maybe move quicker than they would have done if they
12:48 did have a bit more time and not that competition? Well, that's the thing. I mean, if you look at
12:53 all the stories at the moment, when you see a centre mid who is linked with a move away,
12:58 someone like Scott McTominay at Manchester United or Conor Gallagher at Chelsea, the two first clubs
13:02 you see are West Ham and Brighton because they're both looking to replace their talismanic midfielders.
13:08 You would imagine that Brighton have a different policy to West Ham. So that would maybe, they
13:15 wouldn't be sort of led into a sort of competition just because they see West Ham are more active in
13:21 looking to sign someone in this transfer window. But they may have an eye on what West Ham are
13:28 doing because at the end of the day, if there's a player that they need and they see that West
13:32 Ham are also in the same position, they may want to act quicker and they want to be smarter. They
13:37 also want to keep their head coach happy because De Serbi is looking to take Brighton into that
13:41 next level of not just being a small club that is competing above its weight, he wants to take
13:46 them into being a club that regularly competes at that level. So to sign players like Conor Gallagher,
13:51 like Scott McTominay who have had big club experience and have had international experience
13:56 as well, that is a sort of landmark signing that he's looking to make, hence why they've been linked
14:01 so heavily with Levi Colwell, one of the most exciting centre-back talents in European football
14:06 who's currently playing at Chelsea. So it's an interesting development to see whether Brighton
14:11 are willing to take the plunge, so to speak, because West Ham I'm sure will. They are very much
14:15 happy to spend that sort of money quite quickly. And I guess also with Brighton, with the way things
14:20 are going at the moment, obviously things are looking good. You've got European football and
14:24 like you said, De Serbi wants to establish them as a top, top club in England, so does the board as
14:28 well. Do you think they'll rush to try and do that? Because I guess there's the fear that you might
14:32 spend big money, it doesn't pay off. Or will you try and find another Casado from maybe South America
14:36 or Eastern Europe where you spend four million and it's going to take three or four years to
14:40 actually come to fruition. Do you think that's something they might lean towards and not rush for
14:43 that European spot? Or will they just want to quickly get in a big player so they can establish
14:47 themselves as soon as possible as a big team? It's hard to call in the centre-mid role because
14:53 their first priority at the moment is signing a left-sided centre-back. This is the Eagle we've
14:58 heard from Fiorentina. That deal is going to be completed sometime this week, a £15 million deal
15:03 for a left-footed centre-back who's had European experience. That's going to be the first deal
15:07 through the door. Their next one, according to what we've heard, is a winger. They want to get
15:12 a winger either right or left side to add more depth in the attack. The Cole Palmer from Manchester
15:18 City is the player that's most closely linked with a deal for that, although we're not sure
15:22 whether that can be a loan move or a transfer. So in regards to how they want to play the centre-mid
15:27 field situation, it's too early to say. I think we'll understand a lot more once the Casado deal
15:33 is done. They will probably see how the first couple of games go in the season before making
15:38 their next move because if Billy Gilmore or Stephen Alzate step up to the role or Mahoud Dahoud and
15:44 they see that they are more than competent at keeping Brighton at the high levels they have
15:49 been for the last two seasons, then they won't need to dip into the market. If Luton Town pull
15:53 them apart and they seem to be shipping goals because they can't control the game, then the
15:58 panic button might be reached a little bit quicker. So there's a lot of moving parts at the moment at
16:03 Brighton in regards to how they tackle the next couple of weeks. They've got two things they want
16:07 to sort out - a defender and a winger. They've got that defender now, the winger I'm sure they'll go
16:12 for next and then the centre-mid field thing will look after itself once a couple of factors are
16:16 sorted out such as whether the current squad is good enough and how they're competing when they're
16:20 back in the Premier League. And obviously you touched on Igor who might be joining the club
16:24 in the next couple of weeks. What can Brighton fans expect from him if he does sign?
16:29 They've got a very, very athletic defender who is very comfortable on the ball. If anyone had
16:34 watched Serie A or even the Conference League last year, they would have seen him driving into
16:37 midfield with ease and confidence. He's a very quick centre-back who likes to be on the ball
16:43 and likes to drive and take it into attacking areas. So they've got someone that suits that
16:47 De Serby style of play of being intricate, short passes and everyone being comfortable on the ball
16:52 and having the ball in tight areas. He will definitely suit that. He's also a very tall
16:57 centre-back who would like to be involved in set pieces and does grab a number of goals each season
17:02 from those situations. So he seems to be slotting in perfectly. He could be the perfect partner to
17:07 Lewis Dunk. Obviously Dunk is getting older and his speed is not what it once was. But both
17:13 two very tall centre-backs which suit the Premier League style of play but also suit De Serby style
17:19 of play because they'll both be ball-playing centre-backs which is what he has desired since
17:23 he came to the club. And do you think Igor will be a player who will start for Brighton
17:26 weekend or week out or do you think Webster might give him a bit of a run for his money there?
17:30 Well you can never say. Obviously someone like Webster has been great for the club especially
17:35 for the last two, three years. But because Igor is a naturally left-footed player that just gives
17:39 the team a bit more balance. That's what Levi Colwell offered so well last year because he was
17:44 also left-footed. So I think that stands Igor in good stead to be the regular starter for Brighton
17:49 going forward from next season. Brilliant, thanks for that Frankie. And thank you for tuning in to
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