Chelsea’s move for Jules Koundé in danger of collapse as Barcelona push

Chelsea’s move for Jules Koundé is in danger of collapsing, with Barcelona refusing to end their pursuit of the Sevilla defender.

It had appeared that Chelsea were set to make Koundé their third summer signing. They were in advanced talks with Sevilla, who have been holding out for £55m, and financial restrictions had left Barcelona on the verge of pulling out of the race for the 23-year-old last Friday.

However Barça revived their interest in Koundé over the weekend and are increasingly optimistic they will win the race to sign the France international. The Catalan club, who have already beaten Chelsea to the signing of the Brazil winger Raphinha, have continued to tell Koundé to wait for them to submit their opening offer. It is believed they could end up paying a lower fee than Chelsea.

Barça’s persistence has raised fears that Chelsea, who have a five-year deal ready for Koundé, are set to encounter further frustration in their attempts to rebuild their defence. It is understood that Chelsea, who have pursued the centre-back since last summer, are close to giving up and could walk away from negotiations with Sevilla if there is no breakthrough soon.

Another complication is Thomas Tuchel is not entirely convinced about signing Koundé. There are doubts over whether the 5ft 10in defender is tall enough to succeed in the Premier League.

Tuchel refused to talk about Koundé before Chelsea faced Arsenal in a pre-season friendly in Florida last Saturday. Chelsea’s manager expressed frustration with Barça’s conduct this summer, suggesting he may stop César Azpilicueta from moving to the Camp Nou.

Tuchel then gave a fiery press conference after Arsenal beat his side 4-0. The German is understood to be frustrated with