BARCELONA: Both La Liga clubs announced on Thursday that Barcelona and Sevilla have reached an agreement in principle for the latter to sign French international defender Jules Kounde. The deal’s financial specifics were kept confidential.
The 23-year-old centre back will reportedly cost Barcelona 55 million euros ($55.82 million).
According to a statement from Barca, “the official nature of the deal is dependent on the player passing a medical and the signing of contracts.”
Kounde was the subject of several offers from Chelsea during the previous transfer window, and according to reports, he was on the verge of joining the Premier League club this month before Barcelona made a last-ditch effort.
Barcelona finished second in La Liga last year and beat Chelsea to the signing of Brazilian winger Raphinha from Leeds United earlier this month.
After three seasons with Sevilla, where he made over 100 appearances across all leagues and won the Europa League in his first season after joining from Ligue 1 club Bordeaux in 2019, Kounde moves to Catalonia.
Andreas Christensen, a centre back from Chelsea, was added to Barcelona’s backline earlier this summer on a free transfer.
Despite having severe financial issues, they also acquired the services of Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie and the Polish forward Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich during a busy transfer window.
The club’s spending has been fueled by the sale of 25% of their domestic television rights for the following 25 years to investment firm Sixth Street. However, Barcelona must adhere to La Liga’s salary cap in order to sign their new additions.
On August 13, Xavi Hernandez’s team will face Rayo Vallecano at home to open the La Liga season.
