Chelsea hold early bird advantage in the race to sign long-term La Liga target

Chelsea remain frontrunners for Jules Kounde amid Barcelona links

Chelsea are still in the driving seat to land Sevilla defender Jules Kounde, despite Barcelona’s attempt to sabotage the deal. 

The Blues are understood to have agreed on personal terms with the Frenchman well in advance, and a move to the Premier League seems imminent. 

According to Spanish outlet AS via Sport Witness (h/t Football.London), Chelsea have “arrived much earlier” than Barcelona for Kounde. The 23-year-old is apparently convinced about a move to West London and thus any attempted hijacking is likely to yield nothing. 

Chelsea have been trying to bring Kounte to the club since last year but Sevilla’s refusal to budge from their asking fee has been a hindrance. Owing to their financial situation, they are understood to be accepting an amount in the region of £55million. 

Barcelona have tried spoiling the party with the Catalan club linked with a move to lure the Frenchman to Camp Nou instead. That now seems to be far from the case, but Chelsea should be pushing hard to get this deal over the line once and for all. 

What’s taking so long?

Kounde is understood to have undergone surgery in Bordeaux yesterday for a minor pelvic injury which had been bothering him since last season. The player is expected to return to Seville next month.

With a long stretch of the transfer window remaining, there is no reason to panic yet. There is solace to be drawn from the latest update, and everything seems to be pointing in the desired direction. 

Kounde’s potential arrival will ease some troubled waters at Chelsea, and allow those at SW6 to shift their focus to other targets – because just one defender won’t solve the bigger problem.

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Chelsea have to find a replacement for the potentially-leaving Marcos Alonso, figure out a solution for the Romelu Lukaku crisis, and sign a competent cover for N’Golo Kante – amongst other things.

But once the Kounde saga is finally put to rest, Chelsea fans could finally breathe a sigh of relief. This is one name that keeps popping up and at one point, it can frustrate those associated with the club if things take so long.