How much is Chelsea target Kounde worth?
Martin Macdonald
- Updated: 3 Aug 2021 21:47 BST
- 6 min read
Chelsea have yet to make a single signing this summer but reports in Spain suggest they are on the cusp of finally spending some money.
According to Spanish journalist Alvaro Montero, the London club are keen on signing Sevilla defender Jules Kounde but will have to fork over €70 million for the player's signature.
Chelsea have Thiago Silva, Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Kurt Zouma in their ranks currently, but Kounde could be about to join the squad at Stamford Bridge, with talks having already commenced with Sevilla over the young Frenchman.
The 22-year-old joined Sevilla in the summer of 2019 from Bordeaux for a reported £21 million (€25m), so any hopeful suitors will need to eclipse that if they are to have any hope of prying him away from the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
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Kounde, according to Sky Italia, has a €80m release clause in his current contract, but Sevilla would allegedly be willing to accept around €60m.
Before Manchester City opted to sign Ruben Dias from Benfica, they were in advanced negotiations for the Frenchman, only for the deal to fall through.
So we have the release clause and the alleged selling price doing the rounds, but how much is he worth, according to our FootballTransfers algorithm?
FootballTransfers' transfer valuations are calculated in collaboration with SciSports, a world-leading football analytics agency that assesses the relative transfer valuations of over 60,000 professional footballers worldwide. SciSports use multiple data points including current and potential ability, contract length, form, age, and other crucial factors.
We value Kounde at €72m.
Therefore, Chelsea could be about to take advantage of the uncertain times during the pandemic to recruit Kounde for €12m less than his valuation.
How good is Jules Kounde?
Kounde has played as a central defender for the majority of his short senior career despite his relatively small height of 5 ft 8, but what he lacks in vertical presence he makes up for in aggression and intensity.
Although he is no stranger to a tackle, his best attribution is his distribution from the back as a ball-playing central defender.
Within the 2020/21 La Liga, he has won the majority of his duels, the majority of his aerial duels, and the majority of his tackles.
He enjoys the sixth-highest amount of touches of the central defenders in the league who have played over 500 minutes and the fifth most passes for a completion rate of 90%.
Despite Sevilla rejecting what was at the time labelled a “magnificent offer” from Man City, director of football Monchi previously praised Kounde’s professionalism since the deal failed.
“He has been professional,” Monchi told El Desmarque.
“Sometimes we are so used to seeing less professional behaviour that we are struck by the normal.
“He has accepted with normality that he has signed a contract, with a clause and some payments. I appreciate that because it’s always easier when the other party understands your position.
“He has had professional and respectful behaviour with the club that has given him the opportunity to take another step in his career.”
Kounde's contract expires in June of 2024 so Sevilla are under no pressure to sell at the moment, but any offer that comes in anywhere close to his hefty release clause will be taken very seriously by the Andalusian side.
