Four questions Brighton need to answer during this transfer window

The Seagulls have already been busy in the market, acquiring three new players and selling their World Cup-winning midfielder Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool for £35m, rising to £55m with add-ons.

Watford forward Joao Pedro has been signed for a club record fee of £30m, whilst Liverpool’s James Milner and Borussia Dortmund’s Mahmoud Dahoud brought in on free transfers.

The Sussex side is also expected to lose star man Moises Caicedo, with Chelsea expected to be the midfielder’s chosen destination, for an expected fee of more than £100m.

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There are a lot of topics of debate surrounding Roberto De Zerbis squad ahead of the new season, which will see the Sussex side compete in the Europa League for the first time in their history.

Here are the six major questions Brighton need to answer over the course of this transfer window.

How to replace Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister?

Brighton’s two best players from last season have looked set to leave the club for a while now. Mac Allister’s move to Merseyside was completed very quickly after Albion’s final game of the campaign away at Aston Villa.

His midfield partner Caicedo is also set to leave soon, with talks already taking place between Brighton and Chelsea ahead of a move for the Ecuadorian international.

Losing both of these players before July may be a blessing in disguise for Brighton, providing them with plenty of time to plug the rather large hole in the centre of their team.

New signing Dahoud has the technical capabilities to slot into De Zerbi’s midfield, whilst Billy Gilmour may also see the two departures as an opportunity to step up and play a bigger role in his second season on the south coast.

Some may argue that the players are already there to fill the midfield void, but with the club looking to fight in four competitions, many believe the club should invest in some reinforcements for the centre of the park.

No names have been mentioned in serious contention yet, but there is still a long way to go in this summer window.

What is the plan if Levi Colwill cannot be signed?

Outside of the Moises Caicedo situation, Brighton’s biggest transfer story so far this summer is their attempts to sign Levi Colwill on a permanent basis.

The young centre-back impressed for the Seagulls last season whilst on loan and would be a perfect partner to skipper Lewis Dunk at the back, giving the appropriate balance to De Zerbi’s build-up play as a left-footed player.

It seems a perfect fit for all involved, but Chelsea have shown reluctance to sell their academy graduate, as new manager Mauricio Pochettino sees the 19-year-old as being a part of his long term plans, leading to the club rejecting Albion’s first bid of £30m.

If the Blues do as expected and reject Brighton’s second £40m bid. Albion should begin to look elsewhere, as the left-side of their defence is an area that hasn't really be sorted since Dan Burn departed for Newcastle in January 2021.

Brighton should not fall into a trap of spending too much time and effort on a deal that isn’t there.

What does the future hold for Robert Sanchez?

Towards the end of last season, De Zerbi made the surprising decision to drop regular first team goalkeeper Sanchez for Jason Steele, claiming the former Sunderland shot stopper was more suited to his style of play.

The Spanish international clearly did not take kindly to this and was not seen in any of Brighton’s matchday squads for their last five league games.

Furthermore, Albion look close to sealing a move for highly-rated Anderlecht and Netherlands under-21 goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, adding more fuel to the fire of a Sanchez exit from the Amex Stadium.

The 25-year-old has two years left on his Brighton deal, so now is the time to cash in on the young goalie, especially when teams with big bank accounts such as Chelsea are interested.

There is no point holding on to a player who doesn't want to be at the club and a further cash injection from the sale could help to fund other deals across the window.

How will the club address the full-back issues?

On both the right and left side of their defence, Albion have a lack of strength and depth in the full-back department.

Pervis Estupinan is the club’s only recognised left-back and while he had an excellent first season in English football, he can’t be expected to play three games a week from August onwards.

On the right, Joel Veltman looks set to leave when his contract expires in two weeks and Tariq Lamptey has been struggling with injury issues for more than two years.

The versatile Pascal Gross took on the role for De Zerbi in the second half of last season, but may be required to play in the centre of the midfield next term due to the sales of Caicedo and Mac Allister.

James Milner can also play in that position, but can not be relied on to start every game at the age of 37.

Therefore, it seems clear to many that a couple of signings in these areas will be crucial to Albion competing at the top end of the Premier League table and going deep in the three cup competitions.