"The view at Arsenal..." - Ornstein drops major Caicedo update as "replacements" claim made

David Ornstein dropped a major Moises Caicedo update, after Arsenal saw a second bid for the player rejected.

Brighton have rebuffed Arsenal’s second bid for Caicedo, thought to be in the region of £70million and told Mikel Arteta’s side the Ecuador international is not for sale.

Caicedo informed Brighton in an open letter of his desire to leave the south coast club, and has since been told to take time off until after Tuesday’s transfer deadline.

The Gunners are in the market for a new midfielder to consolidate their title challenge, with the club some five points clear at the top of the Premier League.

Indeed, the desire for reinforcements was sharpened after fringe midfielder Mohamed Elneny suffered a knee injury last week.

Ornstein’s Caicedo update

Ornstein, the Athletic’s transfer guru, claimed the Gunners are desperate to sign a midfielder in the next two days.

However, Brighton have been steadfast in their insistence Caicedo will remain at Brighton beyond Tuesday’s transfer deadline.

The Seagulls have allegedly dismissed Arsenal’s bids for Caicedo as “irrelevant”, having stressed the player is not for sale during dialogue between the two clubs.

However, Roberto De Zerbi’s side have allegedly been exploring potential replacements if Caicedo were to leave this window - a move merely thought be part of the recruitment process.

Ornstein claimed that Brighton consider the case closed for this market. Not only is the midfielder under contract until 2025, but there is an option to extend that by a further year.

Reputable transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano has given a very similar update on the 21-year-old’s future, insisting that Brighton “immediately” rejected the Gunners’ second approach for the youngster.

The Italian journalist claimed yesterday: "Understand Arsenal second bid for Moises Caicedo worth £70m fee with add ons included has been immediately rejected by Brighton tonight.

"Should Arsenal make a new proposal in the next 48 hours, it’d be a potential record fee for the club."

Topics: Football, Transfers, Moises Caicedo, Brighton And Hove Albion, Arsenal, Fabrizio Romano

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.