'Big player' - Brighton boss confirms the major transfer deal they are most likely to complete this summer

Pedro, who has scored 11 goals in 35 Championship outings this term, is reportedly on the verge of agreeing a £30m summer move to the Seagulls.

The cost of the deal is expected to eclipse the transfer of defender Adam Webster from Bristol City for a fee of around £20million in August 2019.

De Zerbi initially joked he was unaware of 21-year-old Brazilian Pedro before expressing admiration for a player who joined the Hornets from Fluminense in January 2020.

“Joao Pedro is a big, big player but I don’t know if it’s close or not,” said the Italian. “He’s a great player.

“I think we are a very good team. We can improve but it’s not the right moment to speak too much about the transfer market.”

Brighton are bidding to get their European push back on track following a 3-1 midweek loss at relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest.

De Zerbi feels his players suffered a hangover from last weekend’s Wembley FA Cup semi-final defeat to Manchester United at the City Ground.

The recent run has highlight a few weaknesses in the Albion squad that De Zerbi will hope to address this summer.

De Zerbi added: “I know the situation we can’t forget we are Brighton. We focus on the last eight games, we can achieve our target we deserve to fight. But the situation is tough because we are not used to playing games in a row. We are working for it and I think we can reach this level. I'm speaking with Tony [Bloom] if we want to reach this level I think we know the way or maybe we work hard to reach this level.”