MOISES IS READY TO COMMAND
MOISES CAICEDO has the chance to prove he will be the next bigmoney star off the Brighton taxi rank when he lines up opposite Christian Eriksen at Old Trafford today.
Albion have sold players for a total of almost £150million over the last year, with Ben White going to Arsenal, Yves Bissouma to Spurs and Marc Cucurella to Chelsea.
But they won’t be short of talent when they face Manchester United.
Tariq Lamptey and Enock Mwepu, whose careers have been impacted by injuries, are ready to step up another gear this season and Ecuadorian midfielder
Caicedo, 20, is the one many people expect to shine brightest.
He scored with a stunning 25yard strike when Albion thrashed United 4-0 at the Amex at the end of last season and is tipped to replace Bissouma in this campaign.
Boss Graham Potter said: “We’ve been really impressed with him. It is not easy to just come from another continent and all of a sudden play in the Premier League.
“We had competition in that area when he first arrived so he went on loan. But since he came back he has done really well.
“We know the quality he has. It is just about having the right development – and then it is up to him. He’s got the chance and the character, so we’re looking forward to it.”
Replacing the all-action style of box-to-box man Bissouma won’t be easy, but Potter insists he doesn’t want an exact replica.
He said: “I don’t think it is one player that replaces Yves because that wouldn’t be fair. Yves is Yves, we’ll miss him and wish him well.
“But we have to find a different solution. It is about looking at the lads we’ve got to fill the gap, and they’ve got to do it their own way.”
Potter takes the same view when it comes to replacing Cucurella following his £63m departure.
“It is not easy to directly replace a player of the value of Marc. You have to look at a different way of collectively adjusting the team.
“We’ve got possibilities if we need to, but at the moment, we’re quite calm and have got faith in the guys we have.”