Roberto De Zerbi has revealed that Brighton & Hove Albion are exploring the transfer market to sign a new midfielder following the departure of Moises Caicedo to Chelsea.
One of the longest transfer sagas of the summer transfer window eventually came to an end on Monday when Caicedo completed a British-record £115m move to Stamford Bridge, penning an eight-year contract.
The 21-year-old established himself as one of the brightest prospects in the Premier League during his two-and-a-half-year spell with Brighton, and he was a key part of the club's successful 2022-23 campaign in which they finished sixth and secured Europa League qualification.
Brighton have also bid farewell to World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister, who joined Liverpool earlier this summer, and De Zerbi is hoping to recruit a new midfielder before the transfer window closes.
"We are working on a new midfielder, but I don't know the situation," De Zerbi said at a press conference on Friday. "That is not my focus, I am focused on the game (against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday)."
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De Zerbi added: "We have to adapt, we have to play in a different way, we are studying different strategy because Moises is a unique player.
"He has different quality, a top, top player. Without him we have to find the right balance, always keeping the ball – always playing in our style.
"We are changing something – we have to be more focused when we have the ball. We can't lose the ball in a simple way.
Brighton have allegedly identified Lille's 19-year-old midfielder Carlos Baleba as a potential replacement for Caicedo and have held talks to sign the £30m-rated Cameroonian.
Commenting on the Seagulls' alleged interest in Baleba, De Zerbi said: "I don't know, we have many midfielders we are studying – I don't know what is the situation.
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Baleba left his native Cameroon to joined Lille in January 2022 and he is now regarded as a highly-rated squad player for the French club under manager Paulo Fonseca.
The teenager, who primarily operates as a defensive midfielder, made 19 first-team appearances in Ligue 1 for Lille last season, including five starts and 14 substitute outings.
Baleba, who still has three years remaining on his contract with Lille, started and played for over an hour in Les Dogues' 1-1 draw with Nice in their opening Ligue 1 game of the new season last Friday.
Brighton have already made two midfield signings so far this summer, recruiting James Milner and Mahmoud Dahoud on free transfers from Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund respectively.
Oliver Thomas
