Krishnan Sreekumar
Chelsea target Jules Kounde set on move away from Sevilla as Manchester United keep tabs on the defender
According to Marca (h/t Express), Sevilla defender Jules Kounde is intent on moving away from the Spanish club in the upcoming transfer window after seeing a move to Chelsea last summer collapse, with Manchester United also keeping tabs on the star.
The Frenchman has been one of Julen Lopetegui’s brightest players this season, and a big reason why the La Liga side finds themselves joint-second in the league table alongside Spanish giants Barcelona. They are on course to qualify for the Champions League next term.
Kounde found himself constantly linked with Chelsea in the previous summer transfer window, but the proposed transfer collapsed at the last moment. He stayed back in Seville and continued his strong performances on the pitch, which has now caught the attention of United.
The Manchester side has been defensively poor this campaign, and reinforcements are being looked at the end of the season to provide some stability and consistency to their rearguard. Given how good Kounde has been this year, there can be no surprise about the Red Devils’ supposed interest in him.
Made up his mind about his future
The summer transfer window offers the perfect opportunity to snap up the 23-year-old, as he is said to have made his mind up over his future after being left ‘tremendously angry‘ about his failed move to Stamford Bridge last summer. The defender is now ‘determined to quit’ Sevilla in the coming weeks, despite him earning much praise for his consistent performances this term.
Another reason for the France international looking forward to departing the city of Seville is because of the fact that he has not been rewarded for his displays on the pitch despite earning plaudits, while the La Liga club has offered new deals for other stars like Diego Carlos and Marcos Acuna.
While Chelsea nearly pulled off a move for Kounde last summer, United spent the previous summer transfer window signing Raphael Varane from Real Madrid to bolster their defence, hoping that the vastly experienced player could sort out their defensive issues.
However, the World Cup winner has struggled with injury issues and has been unable to turn out for the Red Devils in a consistent run of games. Furthermore, he has failed to have the desired impact everyone expected of him when he moved to Manchester.
With club captain also Harry Maguire being woeful this term in defence, it is not a far-fetched thought to think that the Old Trafford outfit will be aiming to sign a new central defender at the end of the season. Kounde may be a good option to target in the summer, especially given that Sevilla have a ‘gigantic‘ need to raise money by selling players.
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Chelsea may perhaps reignite their interest in the Frenchman after nearly signing him last year, and if so, United will need to prepare to battle their rivals for securing the services of the Sevilla star. Only time will tell if the defender will pick the Premier League as his destination.
It would be wise if we can clear out some fringe players that are clearly not in the club’s plans going forward- raising money in the process and freeing up the wage bill. But that depends on what Erik ten Hag thinks of this squad and the players when he takes over the helm this summer.
