Report: Chelsea now told they need to pay £100m to sign 21-year-old, they wanted him as well as Enzo Fernandez

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Reports have claimed that Brighton have slapped a £100m price tag on midfielder Moises Caicedo.

According to The Times, the Premier League overachievers are looking to beat off interest from Chelsea by setting a value just too high to be met.

The Blues have been linked with a move for the Ecuador international for the majority of this month, with him reportedly being a priority for a couple of weeks now.

This was after they were met with stiff resistance by Benfica over the potential transfer of Enzo Fernandez.

It seemed as if they were close to a deal to bring in the Argentina international, however they have been told it’s release clause or nothing if they want to sign him.

A potential signing of Caicedo would have been hoped to be for less money than what would be needed to sign Fernandez.

Chelsea need to pay £100m for Caicedo

However, The Times have claimed Brighton have no intention of letting him go this month for any less than £100m.

This will come as some blow to the Blues. The price tag would be a club record, bettering the amount paid for Romelu Lukaku.

Whether it’s going to be for this amount or not, the midfield is certainly an area Chelsea need to address.

Jorginho and N’golo Kante both have contracts which expire at the end of the season, and the Italy international in particular is showing little ambition of extending his stay.

With there being no guarantee that Denis Zakaria will be at Stamford Bridge next year either, it could even take two signing to keep the club competing at the top.

However, an addition in January is looking difficult to make, with sides like Brighton and Benfica sticking to their guns in the face of big-money offers.