According to reports, Barcelona has joined the race to sign France and Seville defender Jules Kunde. It was gathered that the Spanish side has made the player their primary objective to strengthen the defense in the summer transfer window. The 23-year-old Frenchman joined Sevilla from Bordeaux in 2019 and has swiftly become one of the most coveted young defenders across Europe. He came close to leaving Sevilla for Chelsea last summer, only for the move to collapse.
But heading into the upcoming window, Kunde could be on the move, with interest in him mounting. English Premier League sides Chelsea and Manchester United have already shown interest in the player. Chelsea wants to top up their defense with Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen leaving. At the same time, Barcelona is also very strongly interested in signing him and has seemingly made him their top target for the summer.
The Catalan giants are already signing a new center-back, with the aforementioned Christensen set to arrive on a Bosman deal once his contract with Chelsea expires. However, manager Xavi Hernandez is keen on adding another world-class central defender. Napoli star player Kalidou Koulibaly had been identified as another key target for the Spanish.
The owner has a massive release clause worth €90 million, which Barcelona will have difficulty in meeting. As a result, the report claims that the Blaugrana are considering the idea of offering some of their players to Sevilla as part of the deal. There already have been reports that right-back Sergio Dest could be used as a makeweight in the deal and Barça could follow through with such an approach as they look to secure the services of Kunde from Sevilla.