Transfer News: Jose Castro reveals Chelsea bid £42.5m for Jules Kounde
According to Diario de Sevilla (h/t Evening Standard), Sevilla president Jose Castro has revealed that Chelsea failed with a £42.5m (€50m) bid for French star Jules Kounde earlier in the summer.
The 22-year-old is one of the best young defenders in the game today and has attracted considerable attention with his performances of late. He was part of the Sevilla side that won the 2020 Europa League and even represented France at Euro 2020.
Chelsea were keen on Kounde in the summer and even sought to add him to their roster. Unfortunately, their attempts came to nought and the players stayed pout in Spain.
Chelsea’s bid while substantial fell well short of Kounde’s £68.5million release clause. While the bid would still have got Sevilla out of their financial mess, they chose against accepting it.
“Even so, with Chelsea’s offer of €50m, the deficit was over. That speaks of the strength of the club.”
Kounde has started off the season well, playing every minute of all but two games for Sevilla so far. He will have a big role to play for the Andalusians this season and could help determine where they eventually finish.
Chelsea, for their part, have a number of decisions to make regarding their options at centre-back. Andreas Christensen is expected to sign a fresh deal soon but the standoff with Antonio Rudiger continues.
Add to it Thiago Silva’s age and it is clear that the Blues need a fresh infusion of youth into their backline. Kounde isn’t just a player who can perform off the bat but can also be the bedrock for the defence for the decade to come.
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It would be fair to assume that nothing short of meeting the release clause will force Sevilla’s hand regarding Kounde. The Blues have shown they are not averse to splashing the cash on the players they deem good enough. Whether Kounde too will join that list remains to be seen.