In a recent turn of events, Brighton & Hove Albion's head coach Roberto De Zerbi has stirred up the transfer market with his comments on Moises Caicedo and Levi Colwill. The coach has openly admitted that Chelsea's negotiations for Caicedo could be made easier if they are willing to send Colwill back as part of the deal.
Chelsea has shown keen interest in signing the Ecuadorian midfielder, Caicedo, and had a £70m bid rejected by Brighton earlier this week. Sources close to Brighton have revealed that this offer was significantly lower than their £100m valuation of the player.
While Chelsea is eager to bring Caicedo to Stamford Bridge, Brighton has expressed interest in re-signing Colwill, who had an impressive loan spell with them last season. However, Chelsea is determined to retain the centre-back.
In a pre-match press conference, De Zerbi fanned the flames of the transfer sagas. He stated, "Everyone is speaking about Moises, Chelsea maybe but me? No. The situation is very clear at the moment. Moises is a Brighton player and Tony Bloom told me, if the conditions don't change, Moises stays with us. For me, it would be great news."
De Zerbi further suggested the possibility of a swap deal for the two players, although he expressed his desire to have both Caicedo and Colwill in the same team again. He said, "There are two questions. Not only about Caicedo, also about Colwill, and maybe it can be [a swap]. I would like to play with Caicedo and Colwill together but at the moment I can only speak about Caicedo as Colwill is not one of my players."
Liverpool has also shown interest in Chelsea defender Levi Colwill. The 20-year-old had a successful campaign last season, winning a European Championship medal with England. He had his first taste of Premier League football while on loan at Brighton, following his rise through Chelsea's Cobham academy ranks.
As the transfer window continues, the future of both Caicedo and Colwill remains uncertain. With De Zerbi's recent comments, it's clear that the transfer market is set for some intriguing negotiations involving these two promising players.
