Moises Caicedo could still sign for Arsenal in the summer, here's how

Arsenal could still land Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo this summer despite their failed attempt to sign him in January, and here's how.

The Gunners' opening bid of £60m for the midfielder was rejected and despite further attempts to lure him away from the Amex Stadium it was clear Brighton weren't going to budge.

The player even went as far as announcing on Instagram his wish to leave the Seagulls to move to North London.

At that point, he was under contract until 2025 and the longer the saga went on the more his valuation would deplete.

However, the club recently announced that Caicedo had signed a new contract which would keep him on the South Coast until at least 2027.

There's surprisingly no release clause inserted but it comes with a hefty pay raise and protects Brighton's interests financially.

It could be seen as a huge blow to Arsenal, but according to The Athletic, 'nobody expects the Ecuador midfielder to still be at the club for the duration of the new deal'.

How much would he cost Arsenal?

It's likely that the final £70m bid Arsenal had rejected for Caicedo in January will no longer be enough to persuade his club to sell. However the Athletic claim the midfielder could still move on in the summer should a club pay a "mighty sum".

The midfielder shone in Brighton's 4-0 thrashing of West Ham on Saturday and for a player who was adamant about leaving to continue to perform is a testament to his mentality.

A price tag in the region of £100m is likely to be what it takes to land Caicedo especially given the figures quoted for other highly-rated midfielders across Europe.

The Ecuadorian has been producing standout performances in the league of late and Brighton have recognised how important he can be in their march up the table by refusing to sell him.

However, head coach Roberto De Zerbi admitted that the lure of Champions League football makes it difficult to keep hold of good players and that the club could sell him at 'every moment'.

As reported by The Athletic, he said: “When you have players like Moises you can always sell them — he is 21, he’s playing in a fantastic way.

“I prefer that he stays with me, but I know the politics of the club and what young players want. He wants to play in the Champions League, the Europa League, to fight to win the title.”

Topics: Arsenal, Moises Caicedo, Mikel Arteta, Premier League, Transfers

Will Evans

Sports journalist with experience writing for local and national titles.

@WillEvo20