Ecuadorian midfielder Moises Caicedo has signed a contract extension with Brighton and Hove Albion until 2027, dealing a huge transfer blow to Arsenal and other interested clubs.
The January transfer window was an interesting one for the 21-year-old as many clubs officially declared their interest in his services. He had been one of the revelations of the 2022/23 Premier League season up until that time and a strong shift in midfield for Ecuador at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar prodded the interested clubs to make a move.
Brighton, however, were unwilling to let go of the midfielder who they signed in 2021 but loaned out to a Belgian second division side for that season. Seeing the opportunity to move to a bigger club with title-winning prospects, he pushed for a move but was unable to convince the Seagulls.
Arsenal, reported to be the club with the highest chances of signing him, went ahead to sign Jorginho from Chelsea to great success. However, the club was reported to still hold an interest in Caicedo and were planning to make a move for him in the summer.
That move has been jeopardised with the Ecuador international putting pen to paper after agreeing terms to remain at the AMEX Stadium until 2027. The new contract also comes with a significant salary increase for the midfielder as it was revealed to be one of the reasons he considered leaving the Seagulls.
“This is a fantastic news for the club, our fans, for me and most importantly for Moises,” Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi said after the deal was officially announced.
“It will make us stronger as we move forward towards our targets on the pitch.”
De Zerbi was without Caicedo for most of January because of the transfer saga surrounding him. The club advised the Italian manager to plan his tactics without factoring him into them as they sought to both punish and keep the 21-year-old out of the public eye due to the transfer saga.
Club captain, Lewis Dunk, showed support for Caicedo while also standing by the club’s management and their decision to hold on to the player at the time.
“I think it’s a massive statement from the club, standing their ground,” Dunk said. “Obviously we’ve sold players over the years to bigger clubs but I think it’s a great statement to show that we want to keep him and I think rightly so.”
