Barca's Kounde reveals how close he came to Man City transfer
FT Desk
- 12 Sept 2022 16:12 BST
- 3 min read
Barcelona beat Chelsea to the €50 million signing of Jules Kounde from Sevilla this summer, but the Frenchman could easily have been turning out for Manchester City instead.
Kounde was one of three players who cost Barcelona €50m or more in the recent window, with Robert Lewandowski's arrival from Bayern Munich and Raphinha's from Leeds also reaching similar figures.
They were part of a significant influx of new players at Camp Nou, and Kounde had to be patient for his debut - not playing until the 4-0 win over Real Vallodolid three games into the campaign - as Barca scrambled to satisfy La Liga financial regulations.
Jules Koundé joins an academy rondo at his Barcelona unveiling 🔵🔴pic.twitter.com/NfAgV8OZ7Y
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Kounde is happy to finally be up and running at Barcelona, but it could have been so different, with Man City scouting him 2019.
"Yes, in my first year at Sevilla," Kounde told Spanish newspaper El Pais when they asked if there had been any contact with Pep Guardiola.
Kounde: 'he called me'
"He called me. He told me that he loved me and that he thought I would fit the way he played."
Guardiola and one of his successors as Barcelona coach, Xavi, both scouted Kounde to the nth degree, the latter finally getting his man this summer.
"At a certain point, yes; I talked a lot about football with both of them," Kounde continued. "And that's what I like.
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"The first thing, in the conversations I had with them, I realised that they had both seen me play. They knew my capabilities perfectly. They didn't talk just to talk. They were very precise conversations."
Instead of joining City, Kounde spent three seasons at Sevilla following his €25m arrival from Bordeaux, and was a cornerstone of the side that lifted the Europa League in 2020.
In the 97th percentile among defenders league-wide for shot-creating actions last season, it is little wonder Kounde was coveted by Barcelona, Chelsea and, as it turns out, City.
