Carlos Baleba has arrived at Brighton with many tipping him to replace the role vacated by Moises Caicedo.

Former club Lille will receive a transfer fee of £23 million, while the 19-year-old has signed a five-year contract with Albion.

Expectations are high from the beginning and Seagulls boss Roberto De Zerbi considers him a key player in the years to come, stating 'he will be the future of the club'.

A risky operation for Brighton who have put their money on a 19-year-old who only made his professional debut in 2022 and only began playing regularly at the start of last season.

The Argus: Baleba was announced on TuesdayBaleba was announced on Tuesday (Image: Paul Hazlewood/BHAFC)

However, Albion’s risks pay off more often than not, especially with acquisitions in the last few seasons.

Baleba comes in for Caicedo following his departure to Chelsea for £115million and he has similar characteristics to the Ecuadorian, being a box-to-box player who has the ability to tackle, drive the ball forwards and even distribute.

This season he has made two appearances for Lille in which he stood out.

Tackling is one of his strengths, registering three tackles and one interception, making him the second best in his team.

Taking into account these statistics have been spread out in only 62 minutes on the pitch this season, it makes it even more spectacular.

Baleba broke into the Lille first team in September last year and made his first start in January.

He is not known as a goal scorer, in fact, he is yet to score his first goal as a professional player, but that will not be his main job at the Albion.

De Zerbi has wanted this signing as Baleba's characteristics suit the system. “Carlos is a very good player. He's very young but a specific player for our style,” he said.

Nonetheless, time to adapt to the new culture, language and system will be required before the talent can make an impact.

“He is 19 and will need some time to get used to his new surroundings. He will get all the support he needs to make that transition and we're looking forward to seeing him in action,” said technical director David Weir.

One positive for the club will be the importance of keeping Baleba in the squad during the African Cup of Nations which takes place next January. His native Cameroon did not make it through to the final stages of next year's competition.