Chelsea are increasingly confident that they will sign Jules Kounde from Sevilla. Their £55m bid is in line with Sevilla’s demands and he has been left out of Sevilla’s pre-season camp in Portugal ahead of an anticipated move. Barcelona are the only obstacle and if you feel they could disrupt the deal see these betting sites.
Barcelona and Chelsea have been the two leading suitors for the 23-year-old Frenchman all summer. It’s widely expected that he’ll be leaving Sevilla – he joined the Andalusian club in the summer of 2019 and has since become one of the finest centre-backs in the European game. Sevilla can no longer sate his ambitions – he wants to join a top-tier club capable of fighting for major honours.
And both Barcelona and Chelsea can offer that. The former have been moving aggressively this summer transfer window to strengthen their squad, bringing in Franck Kessie, Andreas Christensen, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski. Xavi Hernandez is building something impressive at Camp Nou and the allure of playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world will never fade. Settling into the Barcelona dressing room would also be easy for Kounde given the fact he can speak fluent Spanish.
The latter won the Champions League in 2020/21 and are led by one of the very finest coaches in the game in Thomas Tuchel. Kounde is a keen student of American culture and is a good English speaker – so likewise he should adapt quickly to life at Stamford Bridge. The win-at-all-costs mentality at Chelsea would also greatly appeal to Kounde after the frustration of playing for a club like Sevilla, who always have a glass ceiling to limit progress.
Kounde is a rare footballer. Still just 23, he formed an ironclad partnership with Diego Carlos at the heart of a Sevilla defence that ranked as one of the best in Europe. Clean in the challenge and composed in bringing the ball out from the back, he’s a unique combination of technique and tenacity. And his age means he has a decade left at the top.
Sevilla finished in the top four of La Liga three seasons in a row during Kounde’s time there, winning the Europa League in his debut campaign and threatening to mount a challenge to Real Madrid for La Liga at one point last year. But this summer will be one of change for the Andalusian side. Diego Carlos has already left, for Aston Villa, and Kounde will follow him out the door soon. But he’s earned his big-money move.
