Brighton and Hove Albion duo Kjell Scherpen and Malick Yalcouyé have admitted they expect to move on again this summer, when a loan move to SK Sturm Graz comes to an end.
[Kleine Zeitung have a joint interview](https://www.kleinezeitung.at/sport/fussball/oesterreich/bundesliga/sksturm/19712199/kjell-scherpen-und-malick-yalcouye-wollen-sich-mit-dem-meistertitel-vom) with the pair today as they eye the end of their loan deals at the Austrian club and a return to Brighton in the summer.
The goalkeeper has been with Sturm Graz since 2023, initially joining them on loan that year after previous spells at KV Oostende and Vitesse Arnhem. A serious knee injury ruined his first year at the club, though, so the deal was extended again last summer.
He was joined at the club by Yalcouyé at that point. He joined Brighton in a €7m deal from IFK Gothenburg last summer but was sent to Sturm Graz a month later to get regular playing time in Austria.
That’s something he and Scherpen have achieved and now their respective loan deals are due to end, meaning a return to Brighton. Both, though, anticipate it will be a fleeting one.
“It is quite possible that I will be awarded to another club, but there is nothing fix yet,” the midfielder said.
“For me, it is clear that I have to play and take the next step. Bart Verbruggen stays in Brighton, so the door is not open to me. Let’s see where the journey is going,” added Scherpen.
“We are wistful. My son Jaze was born here; he is a Grazer. I have only good memories otherwise. We met such great people – from the club to the nursery to the fans. This was certainly the most beautiful foreign location in my career. I hope that it will become so beautiful at my next stop, but that will be very difficult.”
Yalcouyé, at 19-years-old, has plenty of time left for more loan deals to continue his development before making his way at Brighton.
That’s not quite the same for Scherpen, who is now 25 years old and seemingly determined to be playing regularly somewhere. The youngster, though, would love to play with his teammate in the Premier League somewhere.
“Playing with Kjell in the Premier League sometime with Kjell, even if it isn’t supposed to be in the next season, would be really cool,” he added.
“He is a very good goalkeeper who is very busy and communicates with everyone. He always has a smile on his face.”