Chelsea see €55m offer for Kounde rejected
FT Desk
- 19 Jul 2022 17:20 BST
- 3 min read
Chelsea have suffered a setback in their pursuit of Jules Kounde after Sevilla rejected the Blues' offer for the France defender.
Kounde has been followed this transfer window by both the Premier League club and Barcelona, but Sevilla will not let him leave without a fight.
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The Andalucians are willing to sell one of their prized assets this summer, though only an offer too good to refuse will be considered - and Chelsea's bid appears to have fallen short of that.
Chelsea filed an offer worth €55 million (£47m) for the 23-year-old, according to GOAL, only to see it rebuffed by Sevilla.
The La Liga club want significantly more from their star, with an asking price which begins at €65m.
Negotiations are expected to continue, and Chelsea may well close in on Sevilla's valuation in the days and weeks to come as they seek to replace both Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger, who have left on free transfers this summer.
They cannot afford to rest on their laurels, however, with Barca still very much in the chase too.
The window's most sought-after defender
Kounde has proved a huge hit at Sevilla since moving to Spain from Bordeaux in 2019.
In three seasons the centre-back has racked up over 100 appearances for the club, helping them to the 2019-20 Europa League title as well as a top-four finishes in all of the campaigns in which he has participated to date.
With just 30 goals conceded over the 2021-22 Liga season Kounde formed part of the Spanish top-flight's meanest defence, which proved even more watertight than that of runaway champions Real Madrid.
