Atletico Madrid 'battling Chelsea for Leandro Trossard deal'

Atletico Madrid are reportedly rivalling Chelsea for the signature of Brighton & Hove Albion attacker Leandro Trossard.

The 27-year-old has been in impressive form for the Seagulls during the 2022-23 campaign, scoring five goals and registering two assists in nine Premier League appearances.

Trossard's current deal at the Amex is due to expire next summer, and Brighton are believed to be bracing for his exit either in January or at the end of the campaign.

Chelsea have been heavily linked with the Belgium international, who thrived under now Blues boss Graham Potter at Brighton, while Liverpool and Arsenal are said to be admirers.

However, according to The Mirror, the strongest competition is currently arriving from Spain, with Atletico determined to sign the attacker on a free transfer.

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Trossard scored a hat trick against Liverpool in the Premier League at the start of the month, but he has been unable to prevent his side losing their last two against Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford.

The Belgian made the move to Brighton from Genk in July 2019, and he has represented the English club on 113 occasions, contributing 23 goals and 13 assists in the process.

As it stands, Atletico would be free to approach Trossard at the start of 2023 to discuss the possibility of signing a pre-contract ahead of a summer move.

However, Chelsea would have to agree a transfer fee with Brighton in order to begin talks with the versatile attacker in the middle of the campaign.

Atletico's difficult financial situation has allegedly led to them looking at the free agent market, with Trossard viewed as the ideal acquisition.

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Brighton have allegedly not given up hope of convincing him to sign a new deal, but the club accept that a strong World Cup would make it almost impossible for them to keep him.

"It's difficult to say anything about that now. It completely depends on which club would come. If I feel good and things are good on a private level... but I also know how good I am at Brighton, also with new coach Roberto De Zerbi it looks promising," Trossard recently told BBC Sport.

Trossard won the Belgian First Division A and the Belgian Cup during his time at Genk, making 120 appearances for the club before arriving at Brighton.

The attacker has been capped on 21 occasions by Belgium, meanwhile, scoring five times in the process, and he is widely expected to be named in their squad for the 2022 World Cup.