Brighton's World Cup winning midfielder Alexis Mac Allister expects to stay at the south coast side for the foreseeable future, stating he is in "no rush to leave" amid speculation linking him with a transfer elsewhere.
Mac Allister started six of Argentina's seven World Cup 2022 games on the way to lifting the trophy, becoming an integral figure in the side as he made two assists and scored once in the tournament, too.
Consequently, speculation has intensified linking Mac Allister with a move away from Brighton, but the 24-year-old has downplayed this by stating how happy he is at the club.
Speaking on Albion TV, the club's in-house YouTube channel, upon his return from celebrating the World Cup win in Argentina, Mac Allister seems intent on translating his performances for his country to Brighton now.
"I try not to read too much," he said. "I always say I am happy here, I don’t have any rush to leave. I feel really good, I’m really grateful with this club, my team-mates and all the people who work here. I’m just focused on the next game and this club.
"It was a good World Cup for this club and for the players who went to the World Cup. We know we’ve got a good team with really good players. This is a tough league, it will be hard, but we will try to finish as high as we can."
Mac Allister joined Brighton in January 2019 from Argentinos Juniors, before signing a contract extension a year ago. Indeed, his current deal is set to expire in June 2025, with the south coast side having an option to extend his deal by another year.
Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool are among the interested clubs, with Transfermarkt valuing him at £37 million. However, it is likely it will take a lot more money to prise the Argentine away from the Amex Stadium.
Chelsea are the favourites to secure his signature, though, due to his connection with Graham Potter and the abundance of staff who have joined the former Brighton manager in London.
Brighton's CEO, Paul Barber, said the club aren't in any rush to sell their prized assests, such as Mac Allister and Ecuadorian Moises Caicedo.
"We have not offered any [player] to anyone and have no plans to," he told The Argus. "In an ideal world our squad, which is as good as it has been for a long time, will remain intact through the whole of January and we will go into the second half of the season as we are.
"The next 30-odd days is unpredictable and we will deal with whatever comes in. But we are not offering anyone to anyone."
Mac Allister only returned to Brighton on Monday, but is in contention to feature during their Premier League fixture against Everton on Tuesday night. During his time away from the club, Brighton beat Southampton 3-1 on Boxing Day, before falling to league leaders Arsenal 4-2 on New Year's Eve.
