Barcelona are in direct negotiations with Sevilla for Jules Kounde according to Fabrizio Romano. Their official bid won’t be €50m plus €10m, nor will it match Chelsea’s £55m bid. It will be lower with a different structure. Kounde has agreed personal terms.
Barcelona had seemingly lost the battle for Kounde to Chelsea, who had appeared on the verge of signing the 23-year-old Frenchman toward the end of last week. But a phone-call from Xavi Hernandez convinced Kounde to wait for Barcelona to come in for him and Chelsea have grown tired of waiting for a green light for the player despite agreeing a deal with Sevilla.
And now it seems almost inevitable that Kounde will be on his way to Camp Nou. The centre-back joined Sevilla from Bordeaux in the summer of 2019 and has since become one of the finest in Spain and Europe. He’s made 133 appearances for the Andalusian club and earned eleven caps for the French national team.
“We’re working to improve the squad, the board is working on it,” Xavi said when asked about Barcelona’s pursuit of Kounde. “If we’ve to announce something, we will.”
Jules Koundé deal, Xavi: “We are at work to improve the squad, the board is working on it. I can’t say more [on Koundé]”. 🔵🔴 #FCB @tjuanmarti
“If we’ve to announce something, we will do it”, Xavi added. Barcelona are more than optimistic. pic.twitter.com/MEDDdSa7Su
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 26, 2022
