Barcelona came away with a bittersweet draw from Naples on Wednesday night, conceding with Napoli’s first shot on target. Watching on were scouts from Chelsea.
According to HITC, as carried by MD, they were present in order to watch French defender Jules Kounde. The 25-year-old has been cited as a potential target for the Blues this summer, as they look to replace Thiago Silva. They were also watching Napoli striker Victor Osimhen. Newcastle United and Arsenal are also noted as potential options for Kounde this summer.
The Catalan daily claim that Kounde is not considering leaving the club as things stand however. Kounde turned down Chelsea in 2022 to move to Barcelona, despite receiving a bigger offer from the London club.
🚨 Right now, Jules Kounde is not thinking about leaving Barcelona this summer. @gbsans pic.twitter.com/CP0ftcW9Ln
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) February 22, 2024
This contrasts with previous reports from Catalonia, where the club at least believe Kounde would consider offers in the summer. The club themselves certainly appear to be open to a move for Kounde in the summer were the right offer to come in, although this is the case for a large portion of their squad.
