Chelsea linked with €60m move for Barcelona defender – report

Barcelona Sporting Director Deco stated after the transfer window ended that he was keen not to sell some of their best players, and while in recent years they have struggled to move players on, clubs are still likely to explore moves for their better players in case of a bargain. One of those could be Jules Kounde.

Kounde has been used as a right-back at Barcelona for the last year, with a lack of alternatives, but has explained that he is content in Catalonia. Last summer there were suggestions that he could be interested in a move though, and now TBR Football say that he remains on Chelsea’s shortlist to improve their defence, alongside Bayer Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong.

Their information is that Chelsea would be looking at around €60m to strike a deal for the French defender, although they may also look towards younger alternatives, matching their semblance of a transfer strategy, by looking at Freiburg’s Kiliann Sildillia, Michael Kayode of Fiorentina and Sporting CP right-back Geovany Quenda.

Given the array of profiles described in the shortlist, Barcelona are unlikely to be too worried that Chelsea are serious about an imminent move. The 25-year-old still has three years left on his deal, so Barcelona will no doubt look into renewing his deal next summer. Kounde was courted by Chelsea before he made his move to Barcelona in 2022, but eventually decided to stay in Spain.