Brighton’s Carlos Baleba faces fitness doubt ahead of new season with ankle injury

Carlos Baleba is not having the easiest relationship with his own body right now. The Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder is doubtful for the start of the new season after picking up an ankle injury, the latest in a string of physical setbacks that have interrupted what should be the most explosive years of a very promising career. For a player valued somewhere between £80 million and £100 million, that is a lot of games spent watching from the treatment room. A pattern of interruptions Baleba is 22 years old, born January 3, 2004, and already carries the kind of transfer valuation that most players never see in a lifetime. Brighton pegged his worth in that £80M to £100M range. Manchester United were among the clubs circling, though that interest has since cooled. The ankle issue is the newest entry in what has become an uncomfortable injury log. In late 2024, a knee problem cut into his preseason preparation and limited his playing time. Early 2025 brought a muscle injury that raised fresh concerns about his availability. Now, heading into the 2026/27 season, it is the ankle that is causing Brighton’s coaching staff to pump the brakes on expectations for his involvement in the o...