Chelsea throw in the towel in €60 million pursuit of Barcelona defensive mainstay | OneFootball

Earlier this week, reports emerged claiming that Chelsea had taken an interest in Barcelona and France defender Jules Kounde.

Given the injury woes of Reece James, the Blues are in the market for a new right-back in the upcoming January transfer window.

And, Kounde’s name was said to be on the wishlist of Chelsea, after they had tried to sign him in 2022 from Sevilla before he joined Barcelona.

Chelsea move on from Kounde

However, now, according to reports relayed by SPORT, Chelsea have already thrown in the towel in their pursuit of Kounde.

Indeed, mere days after talks of the Blues being ready to offer €60 million to sign the 25-year-old from Barcelona in January, they have given up the chase.

Chelsea end interest in Kounde. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

As per the report, the Chelsea directors believe that Kounde has no intentions of leaving Barça at this point, that too in the middle of the season.

Therefore, the Premier League heavyweights now consider the operation to be impossible and have decided to move on to other options.

Having decided to give up their pursuit of Kounde, Chelsea have now set their sights on Fiorentina defender Michael Kayode, who is unlikely to cost more than €25 million.

Solid start for Kounde

After an excellent run at right-back in the UEFA Euro 2024 with France, Kounde has shone brightly in the same role for Barcelona this season.

With the club failing to re-sign Joao Cancelo, there were some concerns about the right-back position, but Kounde has excelled in the role and made the slot his own.

Defensively reliable, the French international has worked on the attacking aspects of his game as well and has even registered a goal and an assist in five La Liga matches this term.