Sevilla head coach Julen Lopetegui has, this weekend, provided an insight into the key reason behind Chelsea’s failure to land defender Jules Kounde.
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The name of French international Kounde of course took centre stage in the football media throughout the summer.
This came with the 22-year-old having been persistently tipped for a move to European champions Chelsea.
Despite the embarrassment of riches at his disposal, Thomas Tuchel evidently identified Kounde, long highly regarded across the continent, as the missing piece from his backline in West London.
The stopper, in turn, was the subject of a number of proposals on the part of the board at Stamford Bridge.
In the end, however, Sevilla stood firm in their stance that Kounde would be going nowhere, if the youngster’s release clause was not met:
‘The right thing to do…’
And, if the latest comments on the part of the club’s head coach are anything to go by, then it appears that Chelsea’s failure to reach such a figure proved the exact reason behind their failure to land the Frenchman ahead of the transfer window slamming shut this week.
During an interview with Diario de Sevilla this weekend, Julen Lopetegui was inevitably drawn on the circumstances which ultimately culminated in Kounde staying put at the club.
And the Spanish tactician went on to explain:
‘Kounde in the end has stayed because the club has decided that it was the right thing to do based on the evaluation of the offers they may have had.’
Lopetegui continued:
‘For me, as a coach, that Jules stays is positive. With the evolution he has had in these two years, it is positive, without any doubt.’
‘We trust that he’ll continue to grow with us and, above all, perform, which is the most important thing.’