Chelsea defender Levi Colwill open to remaining at Brighton & Hove Albion

Chelsea defender Levi Colwill has suggested that he is open to remaining at Brighton & Hove Albion past the end of this season.

Last summer, Chelsea rejected Brighton's attempts to sign Colwill on a permanent basis, instead insisting on a straight loan deal to give themselves the chance of integrating the academy graduate into their senior ranks at a later date.

On the back of last year's productive stint at Huddersfield Town, the 20-year-old has successfully made the step up to top-flight football by helping Brighton achieve a top-six finish in the Premier League.

While Colwill has been restricted to 12 starts and four substitute outings in the league, he has enhanced his stock with a number of eye-catching performances.

If reports are to be believed, likely new Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino has told club officials that he wishes to have the England Under-21 international in his squad for 2023-24.

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However, while Chelsea possess the right to enforce that request, Colwill has just over two years remaining on his contract and his valuation has sky-rocketed at a time when Chelsea need to significantly boost their position with FFP.

Much may depend on whether Colwill signals a willingness to pen a new long-term deal at Stamford Bridge, but that appears far from a formality at this stage.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Athletic after helping Brighton hold Manchester City to a 1-1 draw, Colwill hinted that he would take time to make a decision over his future.

The centre-back said: "Brighton have done a lot for me. They put their trust in me when others didn't and I'm a person that loves to repay that. We'll see.

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"I don't know what is going to happen. I'm still here until the end of the season. I just focus on that, then I've got the Euros (the Under-21 European Championship) in the summer. After that, we'll see what happens and go from there."

Colwill added: "I love the Brighton fans, I love everything about them. I'll take that into consideration."

While Colwill is still yet to make his first-team debut for Chelsea, he has been with the West Londoners since first representing their under-nine side.

Although that affinity with Chelsea is there, his parent club have missed out on European football for 2023-24, something that can be offered by Brighton.