Arsenal are favouring a move for Southampton’s Romeo Lavia over and could end their interest in the Brighton midfielder, according to reports.
Manager Mikel Arteta is eager to bolster his midfield this summer and has made skipper his number one target, with a set to be made imminently.
But, with and Granit Xhaka both potentially leaving, Arteta wants to bring in a second midfielder this summer as well.
The north Londoners have long-standing interest in Caicedo – having had a bid rejected in the January window – but now look likely to switch to a more affordable target.
Brighton rejected a £75m offer in the winter and are thought to want a fee in excess of that figure now, with Chelsea the club making the biggest push to sign the Ecuadorian.
In light of West Ham holding firm over their mammoth Rice valuation, as well as the Gunners pushing ahead with a £65m deal for Kai Havertz, Arsenal appear increasingly unlikely to be able to afford both players.
As such, are reporting that Arsenal’s pursuit of Caicedo is likely to come to an end, with Arteta now favouring a move for Lavia instead.
The Southampton teenager, who was previously at Manchester City, has been on the Gunners’ radar for some time and, while he is less established than Caicedo, Arteta is a massive fan.
Arsenal and their Spanish boss see Lavia as both a younger and cheaper option that would compliment their existing options, while he is viewed as having enormous potential.
Lavia is seen predominantly as a replacement for Partey, who is attracting interest from clubs in Italy and Saudi Arabia and looks increasingly likely to leave.
Arsenal are ready to bid £40m for Lavia, which could be enough for Southampton to sell – with City including a clause that allows them to buy the 19-year-old back for that same figure, though it only comes into effect next year.
The deal that saw Lavia move to the south coast last year was also believed to contain a rather large sell-on clause, which could see Southampton try and hold out for a bigger fee from Arsenal.
Still, he is likely to cost around half what Brighton will demand for Caicedo and will be more suited to an understudy role in which he would rotate in and out of the squad.
Should Arsenal successfully fend off late interest from Manchester City for Rice, their midfield would have the England international at the base with Martin Odegaard and potentially Kai Havertz ahead of him, with Lavia providing a more defence-conscious, orthodox midfield option.
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