Chelsea have had to put a stop to their pursuit of Sevilla star Jules Kounde after having trouble unloading one of their own defenders.
Blues boss Thomas Tuchel is looking for a new central medium and Kounde has been on the radar for some time. But there seems to be a dead end over the price of the France international. The former Bordeaux star has a buyout clause of € 80 million and that has been deemed too high for the Blues.
Chelsea proposed a more player cash deal, with Kurt Zouma in the mix as the final weight. The Spanish refused to play ball for that option with doubts about the value of Zouma.
And they’re waiting for more cash from the sale of the 22-year-old Parisian. According to reports, the LaLiga team would be willing to accept 60 million euros to reach an agreement on the line.
Whether business can be done with those numbers remains to be seen, but Zouma’s name has come up again. He seemed ready to go, with West Ham as a likely destination.
However, a report on Wednesday suggested that he will now stay at Stamford Bridge and sign a new deal. There has been no confirmation, but it appears that the former Everton loan star will not be joining the Hammers.
It leaves Chelsea in a quandary as they need to make room for Kounde, according to The Guardian. Tuchel wants the classy central defender in his ranks and big decisions may have to be made.
World Cup winner, a big Kounde fan
There is no question of the quality of Kounde and the reason why Tuchel continues his search. Former Chelsea star and 1988 World Cup winner with Les Blues Frank Leboeuf is convinced that they should sign him.
“(Kounde) is a fantastic player,” he told ESPN. “He has it all and he is a warrior and he never gives up. It has everything and it is the safe future.
“Maybe it’s a chance for Chelsea to catch him, maybe not this season, but next. I don’t know what Kounde wants to do in his life, if he’s ready to be in the bank more than he thinks he will be. It depends on him. It would be a good signing for Chelsea ”.
If Tuchel fails to land his man, the German has enough cover. He already has four centrals while César Azpilicueta Y Reece James it can also play that role.
But the former Paris Saint-Germain strategist clearly wants Kounde and a deal could go straight to the wire.
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