Moises Caicedo has revealed his reasons for demanding a transfer to Arsenal in January and said he wants the Gunners to end their near 20-year wait for the Premier League title.
Mikel Arteta was determined to sign the Brighton midfielder in the most recent transfer window, but even a club record bid in excess of £70m was not enough to tempt the Seagulls into selling the Ecuador international.
Caicedo went public with his desire to leave the club but Brighton held firm and have reintegrated him back into a team that are on the brink of European qualification and an FA Cup final.
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The 21-year-old says he has no regrets about his now infamous Instagram statement, which amounted to a public transfer request, and remains in awe of an Arsenal team who remain in contention to finish the campaign as champions.
‘I’d seen a lot of Arsenal before knowing that there was a possibility of me signing for them,’ Caicedo told the Daily Telegraph when asked why he wanted to sign for the North London side.
‘I watched them and I liked them because they have very young, talented players and some stars but they always have that mindset of wanting more.
‘Of course,’ he added, when asked if he wanted Arsenal to pip City to the title. ‘I hope so but let’s see.’
Caicedo was also coy on the possibility of leaving in the summer, just months after he signed a new deal in the wake of Birghton refusing him the chance of a dream move to the Emirates.
‘I’m sure I’m going to have many more opportunities,’ he said. ‘That’s why I continue to do things well.
‘[But] it was tough. At the beginning when I didn’t end up going, lots of people would make fun of me on Instagram. ‘People treated me badly. I didn’t check my social media because it would hurt me to see things.
‘I just want to have a really good season with Brighton now, to finish off the season well and play really well and then we’ll see what happens next season.’
