Brighton & Hove Albion have reportedly joined a number of Premier League clubs in the race to sign Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher.
The Seagulls are looking to bolster their midfield options following the sale of Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool, while Moises Caicedo is seemingly on the verge of leaving the Amex Stadium amid interest from Chelsea.
A recent report claims that Caicedo, 21, has agreed to swap the South coast for West London and a fee between £70m and £80m could be enough to prise him away this summer.
According to 90min, Brighton have opened talks with Chelsea over move to sign Gallagher, and they are hopeful of finalising a permanent transfer ahead of the 2023-24 season.
The report adds that the Seagulls view Gallagher as an ideal replacement for Mac Allister, and the 23-year-old is interested by the prospect of representing Roberto De Zerbi's side in the Europa League.
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Brighton will likely face stern competition from the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Newcastle United for Gallagher's signature.
Nevertheless, it is thought that the Seagulls have a strong chance of winning the race to sign the midfielder, who could be used as a makeweight in Chelsea's deal to recruit Caicedo.
Gallagher is one of a number of first-team players Chelsea are prepared to part ways with this summer as newly-appointed head coach Mauricio Pochettino attempts to trim his bloated squad.
Indeed, the likes of Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante and Ruben Loftus-Cheek have all been linked with other clubs in recent months, while it has already been confirmed that Denis Zakaria will return to Juventus when his loan spell expires.
Gallagher, who is currently away on international duty with Gareth Southgate's England squad, came through Chelsea's youth system before spending four separate loan spells with Charlton Athletic, Swansea City, West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace.
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The box-to-box midfielder particularly impressed with Palace, scoring eight goals and providing five assists in 39 appearances two seasons ago before being given the chance to impress in the senior side at Chelsea in 2022-23.
Gallagher was never regarded as first-team regular, though, and started only 21 of his 45 appearances for the Blues across all competitions, scoring just three goals, and he is now thought to be keen to gain regular starts elsewhere.
Brighton have already completed the signing of 37-year-old midfielder James Milner on a free transfer from Liverpool, and they are believed to be on the verge of recruiting free agent Mahmoud Dahoud following his release from Borussia Dortmund.
Meanwhile, the Seagulls are also keen to sign Chelsea defender Levi Colwill on a permanent basis following a successful loan spell in 2022-23 and have allegedly tabled a club-record £40m bid, but the Blues are said to have no interest in selling the 20-year-old.
Oliver Thomas
