Chelsea scouts spied on €60 million-rated Barcelona defender during 1-1 draw vs Napoli

It is no secret that Chelsea were intent on signing Jules Kounde during the summer of 2022 but were beaten to the punch by FC Barcelona.

Two years later, it appears that the Blues have rekindled their interest in the 25-year-old French defender.

Chelsea scout Jules Kounde during Napoli 1-1 Barcelona

Indeed, as per reports relayed by SPORT, Chelsea sent scouts to last night’s UEFA Champions League encounter between Barcelona and Napoli to monitor Jules Kounde as well as Victor Osimhen.

The Blues, who have not shied away from splashing the big bucks on players under the new ownership, are seeking defensive reinforcements in the summer.

With Thiago Silva’s contract expiring and a renewal seeming unlikely, Chelsea are in the hunt for a new centre-back and it appears that the search has led them back to Kounde again.

Could Kounde be sold?

It must be remembered that the French international had a pre-agreement with Chelsea in 2022 and would have earned a bigger salary there, but opted to snub them when Barcelona came calling.

However, it has not always been smooth sailing for the defender at Barça as he was unhappy being deployed at right-back in his debut season, which became an issue during last summer.

While Kounde was reinstated to his centre-back position this season, in recent weeks he is once again playing at right-back.

Furthermore, with Barcelona needing some major sales in the summer, Kounde has been allegedly identified as someone who could be sold, due to the overbooking in the centre-back department.

It has been previously reported that the ex-Sevilla man, whose market value stands at €60 million, could be open to offers himself. So, with Chelsea now sending scouts to watch him, it will be interesting to see if this leads to anything in the summer.