Chelsea have failed with another bid to sign Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Moises Caicedo, according to The Athletic.
The Blues have identified the 21-year-old as their priority midfield target after missing out on Manuel Ugarte earlier in the summer.
They recently made a fresh offer of £70m without add-ons for him, but the proposal was immediately snubbed by the Seagulls.Brighton currently believe Caicedo is at the same level as Declan Rice, who recently joined Arsenal from West Ham for £105m.
They are anticipating a similar figure on the table for the Ecuadorian, and the onus is on Chelsea to come close to that price.Chelsea are currently short in midfield with the departures of N’Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic this summer. They also sold Jorginho in January.
The Blues want at least two additions to the squad. Caicedo is the top target and they remain optimistic of prising him away from Brighton.
Once Caicedo arrives at the club, the Blues could target another midfielder.