BRIGHTON SIGN MIDFIELDER CARLOS BALEBA FROM LILLE FOR £25.7 MILLION
A month after losing midfielder Moisés Caicedo to Chelsea for £115 million, Brighton and Hove Albion have already found his replacement. The Seagulls announced on Tuesday the signing of Carlos Baleba from LOSC Lille, a young, highly reputable midfielder who is expected to fit in seamlessly in head coach Roberto De Zerbi’s style of play.
As per transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano, the total transfer fee for Baleba is a whopping €30 million that includes a fixed fee of €27 million (£23.2 million) and total add-ons worth up to €3 million (£2.5 million). Lille also included a 15% sell-on clause in the deal if Brighton moved the former Futur Soccer FC star down the line. The Cameroonian international signed a five-year deal that will keep him at Brighton until June 30th, 2028.
Baleba makes the move to the Premier League just eighteen months after joining LOSC Lille from his native Cameroon. The 19-year-old had attracted scouts from several clubs across Europe before his move in January 2022 and solidified his position in the first team by the summer.
A fast, agile and tough midfielder, Baleba quickly impressed Lille’s newly appointed manager Paulo Fonseca during preseason in 2022, thereby earning himself a promotion to the first team by the 2022/23 season. The Douala-born midfielder made a few appearances on the bench for Lille without making his professional debut. But that quickly changed at the start of the new season, when he came off the bench for Angel Gomes in a 4-1 win against Auxerre in August last year.
Baleba had to wait for his first Ligue 1 start, however, which would come in January this year in a goalless draw with Stade Brestois. He went on to make 19 league appearances during the entirety of the 2022/23 season.
After impressing with his dribbling and passing range last season and in two games this month, Baleba now lands in the Premier League. The young midfielder of Basaa descent can play as a defensive midfielder or in a box-to-box role, a versatile quality that is becoming increasingly rare in the modern game.
“Carlos is a very good player,” said head coach Roberto De Zerbi. “He’s very young but a specific player for our style. He will be the future of the club.”
Brighton technical director David Weir also spoke on the new signing adding “We are really happy to be able to bring Carlos to the club. He’s 19 and will need some time to get used to his new surroundings, our culture and the language; he will get all the support he needs to make that transition and we’re looking forward to seeing him in action.”
The young midfielder is now the second most expensive Cameroonian player of all time, behind goalkeeper Andre Onana who moved to Manchester United this summer for a staggering fee of £50 million. Baleba underwent medicals at Brighton on Monday and Tuesday before signing his new deal in the afternoon yesterday.
Baleba ranks in the top ten percent of central midfielders over the past year in Europe’s top-five leagues and was a stout midfield machine in France with Lille, helping them to a top five finish in Ligue 1 last season.
The arrival of Baleba at the Amex will most likely mean the exit of Colombian international midfielder Steven Alzate. The Camden-born midfielder spent last season on loan at Standard Liège and is expected to make a move away from the club this month. According to multiple reports, Alzate is currently piquing the interest of more than a few clubs, including Everton, Wolverhampton Wanderers, La Liga side Sevilla and European Conference finalists, Fiorentina.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
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