Jules Kounde, 24, is headed to Chelsea FC as the west London club’s third signing (after Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly) of the summer. The French international and center back has been the focal point of one of the most tedious transfer sagas of the summer. But it’s all set to reach a conclusion now, with multiple outlets, on both sides of the Atlantic, calling this one.
Check out the tweet below, from this reporter with CBS Sports:
Chelsea expect to agree a fee with Sevilla for Jules Kounde today for around €60 million, including add ons. Sevilla want a deal wrapped up by Thursday latest when they travel to Portugal. Kounde very open to #CFC move and expects to know his next club by end of week.
— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) July 20, 2022
Elsewhere, according to the Mirror, Kounde has:
“agreed personal terms with the Blues and the club have reportedly agreed to pay Sevilla’s asking price of £51million plus £4m in add-ons.”
The Daily Mirror article is quoting as per The Sun which points out how: “Tuchel unsuccessfully tried to sign the Frenchman last summer but has now finally got his man, with Kounde due to undergo a medical within the next 48 hours.”
In other words, it is indeed “here we go” time with Jules Kounde, and we should see him “Signed, Sealed and Delivered, I’m Yours” (apologies to Stevie Wonder) by the weekend. Perhaps Jules Kounde can even join up with the rest of the squad for the end of their preseason tour in the United States. They’ll take on FC Charlotte at the MLS club’s home stadium tonight, with a London derby in the so-called “Florida Cup” on Saturday night.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.