Chelsea’s pursuit of Sevilla defender Jules Kounde continues during this transfer window and the Spanish side will not let him go for less than €65million (£55.6m).
The Blues have been interested in the 23-year-old for over a year, making a bid for his services last summer which was unsuccessful.
With the summer departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, Chelsea are in serious need of reinforcements at centre-back and Kounde remains their number one target in the position.
They will likely get their man, but Sevilla will not be strong-armed into letting him go cheaply, with Spanish publication Marca reporting that they will not dip below €65m (£55.6m) in their valuation.
This is less than the €80m (£68.5m) price tag they put on the defender last year, which ultimately scuppered his move to Stamford Bridge after it had appeared that an agreement had been reached for a lower fee.
The deal was so close that Kounde admitted the failed switch to west London affected his performances at the start of last season.
‘Yes, a little bit,’ he told Telefoot. ‘But now I’ve dealt with it.’
Sevilla CEO Jose Maria Cruz has admitted that Kounde is keen to move on, looking for a switch to a bigger club than his current employers.
‘He is happy with us. In the case of Kounde, it is not a matter of money. It’s a matter of him wanting to play in a more competitive team than Sevilla,’ Cruz told Sporting Witness.
‘I am sure he is a player that is attractive for teams like Chelsea, FC Barcelona, Bayern Munich and these types of teams. He wants to play in a more competitive team.’
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