Brighton have the offer, and they are not impressed
Twelve months ago Brighton wanted 140 M€ for Carlos Baleba and Manchester United walked away. The asking price has halved since. United came back.
Talks between the two clubs are at an advanced stage, The Athletic reported on Wednesday, with an opening package already lodged on the south coast: 70 M€ guaranteed and a further 6 M€ tied to performance. Brighton consider it short of the mark. Nothing is signed.
Baleba turned 22 this year and has 16 caps for Cameroon. He plays in front of the back four, hunts the ball, wins his duels, and Datascout’s profiling reads him as a midfielder built for the specific chaos of English football.
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A third midfielder in a matter of weeks
United have already been busy in that area of the pitch. Andrey Santos cost 56 M€ from Chelsea. Youri Tielemans arrived from Aston Villa at 41 M€. Baleba would make three.
Michael Carrick stays in the job after steering the club to third and back into the Champions League. Add the Cameroonian to Tielemans, Santos, Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes and Carrick suddenly has more central options than he has places to put them.
Lille are watching the numbers
LOSC have skin in this. When Baleba left for Brighton three years ago at 27 M€, the French club protected themselves with a sell-on clause worth 15 to 20 percent of any future profit.
Do the arithmetic on a 76 M€ deal and Lille collect somewhere between 6 and 9 M€. That is useful money at any time. In the closing fortnight of a transfer window, it is close to essential.
Brighton are not blinking yet. There are under two weeks left.
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