‘I’d have driven him there’ – Former England star stunned that Brighton rejected Arsenal’s £70m transfer bid for Caicedo

FORMER England star Danny Murphy has been left stunned that Brighton did not take the money Arsenal offered to sign Moises Caicedo.

Caicedo was the subject of two massive bids of £60million and £70m from the Gunners in the January transfer window.

PAMoises Caicedo saw a transfer to Arsenal thwarted by Brighton[/caption]

However, despite Caicedo openly pleading with the club to sanction the transfer, Brighton held firm.

Instead, the Seagulls banished Caicedo from training until the transfer deadline had passed, with Caicedo returning to training, as planned by the club, today.

But Liverpool icon Murphy believes Brighton were silly to not cash in while they had the chance.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Murphy said: “£70million for Caicedo? I’d have driven him there.

“I mean, he could do a cruciate next month.”

Despite being a regular starter for the South Coast outfit, Brighton did not need Caicedo to overcome the challenge of FA Cup champions Liverpool when the two sides clashed at the weekend.

Goals from Lewis Dunk and Kaoru Mitoma saw Brighton through to the fifth round of the tournament at the expense of Jurgen Klopp’s side.

In addition, Arsenal opted for the more shrewd purchase of out of favour Chelsea star Jorginho, who arrived on deadline day for £12m after Chelsea splashed a British transfer record of £107m on Enzo Fernandez.

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Later on, Murphy argued the drama surrounding Caicedo could impact his performances on the pitch.

He added: “I’m sure he is [a good professional], i’m just saying there’s a possibility it will weigh on him.

“And the fact is £70m – he’s good, but that is more than a fair price.”