Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano insists that Premier League leaders Arsenal are “the latest club” to declare their interest in Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo.

The Gunners have already made two signings in the January transfer window with Leandro Trossard arriving from Brighton and Jakub Kiwior joining from Italian club Spezia.

There have been rumours that midfield and up front are the two positions that Mikel Arteta is still most concerned about with their squad depth not as strong as some of their Premier League rivals.

Although they brought in Fabio Vieira in the summer transfer window, the Portuguese midfielder has not quite had the impact some fans were expecting.

And now Romano brings us a ‘surprise’ with the transfer expert revealing that Arsenal have contacted the agent of Brighton midfielder Caicedo to make their interest in the Ecuador international known.

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Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Moises Caicedo has new agents now and so Arsenal are the latest club being kept informed on the situation. Chelsea have been pushing for weeks and so they remain keen on signing Caicedo. The big issue is Brighton; they want to keep the player.”

Respected CBS Sports journalist Ben Jacobs recently said that Brighton are now looking for over £75m if they are to sell Caicedo this month.

Jacobs wrote on Twitter: “Brighton now want £75m+ for Moises Caicedo in January. Their CEO Paul Barber tells me the club “understand” if Caicedo wants a move but won’t sell in January unless their valuation is met. CFC have an excellent relationship with Brighton and have tested the water around £65m.

“January deal is tricky. It will involve paying above Caicedo’s market value, especially with Brighton under no pressure to sell. And Brighton may add a Leandro Trossard fee before the window shuts further solidifying their position of trying to keep Caicedo until at least summer.

“Told Brighton do anticipate plenty of summer interest for Caicedo, too. That’s also why they’ll hold out for such a big fee if he’s to leave mid-season.

“Nonetheless, Graham Potter is keen to reunite with Caicedo. CFC may have to be patient even with limited time left in January. Caicedo has just changed his agent and if a deal does comes off it might be relatively late in the window.

“Paul Winstanley helped bring Caicedo to Brighton and has been used already internally to assess the likelihood of success.

“Liverpool interest in Caicedo dates back to Independiente del Valle. They didn’t move because his agent(s) situation was complicated and there were lots of side costs away from the transfer fee itself. Told they don’t see value in Brighton’s price tag right now.

“Newcastle are also one to watch. Club are looking at more budget midfield options and are still prioritising a creative-minded midfielder over a DM. However they are monitoring the situation.”

And on Tuesday Caicedo responded to speculation linking him with a move away from Brighton, he said: “I’m focused on Brighton. I’m here, I’m focused on this club so things from outside don’t trouble me, nor does it take that focus away because I’m focused only on here.

“I only try to be focused on club which opened the doors for me to be playing every week.”

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The article Romano reveals ‘surprise’ Arsenal target as Prem midfielder responds to transfer speculation appeared first on Football365.com.