January 05, (THEWILL) –Â Chelsea is still interested in Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde and are likely to make a move for a deal with the Frenchman before the summer transfer window closes.
Last August, the Blues thought they had struck a deal to sign Kounde for a bargain price, only to be shocked when the Spanish club raised their demands at the eleventh hour. Chelsea refused to do business with him after that, and the 23-year-old was compelled to stay at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan despite his desire to leave.
Since the transfer of Kurt Zouma to West Ham, the emergence of academy product Trevoh Chalobah has filled the void in Thomas Tuchel’s squad. Chelsea are still expected to look for a new centre-back especially as the futures of Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, and Cesar Azpilicueta are all in doubt with their contracts coming to an end in the next half year.
While other prospects such as Villarreal’s Pau Torres and Bayern Munich’s Niklas Sule were evaluated, it is believed that Chelsea have decided that Kounde remains the best possibility and that he will join at some point in 2022.
Sevilla’s demands rule out a January move for the defender, but the west Londoners are attempting to beat any other interested parties to a deal before the summer window opens, a strategy they may use with Monaco midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni.
Kounde’s contract in Andalusia includes a £68 million release clause, which the Blues could utilise to avoid having to negotiate with Sevilla after their problems last season.
Kounde, who idolises current Chelsea star Thiago Silva, is adamant about moving to Stamford Bridge and has told his current employers that much.
The France international has continued to impress this season, contributing to a stingy backline that has kept eight clean sheets in La Liga, with Sevilla posing the most serious challenge to leaders Real Madrid.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
