- Caicedo remains Chelsea's top target
- Brighton have rejected all offers so far
- De Zerbi reveals he has replacement lined-up
WHAT HAPPENED? The Seagulls have reportedly rejected Chelsea's latest offer for Caicedo, worth £80 million ($103m) as they value the midfielder in excess of £100m ($128m). Meanwhile, De Zerbi seems to be already preparing for life without Caicedo as the coach has admitted he's already identified a replacement for the Ecuadorian.
WHAT THEY SAID: "If you ask me what I would like? I would like to keep and for him to stay with us but it is not my work. My work is to tell my owner if [Moisés] Caicedo leaves we need another big and important midfielder," he told reporters.
On being pressed whether he has a replacement in mind, he said, "Yes, but I don't want to tell. I follow the words of my owner and my owner did not tell me anything about Caicedo in the last hour."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: De Zerbi lavished praise on Caicedo for being a thorough professional but warned that it is not easy for him to deal with the uncertainty that currently looms over his future.
"For a young player, it is difficult to stay with the possibility of changing teams, to change cities and everything. But he is a serious player and is working in a good way. We are waiting to see if the situation changes or not," he added.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
WHAT NEXT? Caicedo remains a top target for the Blues and it remains to be seen if they will submit a new bid and meet Brighton's asking price.