Barcelona convinced Kounde to go on pre-season camp with Sevilla, delaying Chelsea move

There has been a fresh twist in the Jules Kounde saga, as Barcelona continue to interfere in the deal in an attempt to lure the defender to the Camp Nou ahead of the new season.

Yesterday evening, Chelsea had reportedly reached an agreement with Sevilla over a potential deal for the Frenchman. The player was subsequently expected to travel to London for his medical.

However, Barcelona are not willing to back down from the deal just yet, especially knowing the fact that Kounde has his heart set on a move to Catalonia.

Although the Catalans are not in a position to match Chelsea’s €65 million offer, along with the €12 million salary offered to Kounde, they believe a last-minute attempt could convince the defender to dump the Blues.

To that end, Kounde has recently made a stunning decision, which has left the door open for Barcelona. Sevilla had not named in him in the squad for their pre-season tour to Portugal. But he has informed the team of his desire to travel with the team and continue his training despite links with Chelsea.

Catalunya Radio and Gerard Romero now claim Barcelona have played a key role in convincing Kounde to travel to Portugal instead of moving to London for his Chelsea medical. The club are certain it will give them enough time to make a final offer for the defender.

There are suggestions that the next 24 hours are going to be key, as Kounde is open to moving to both Chelsea and Barcelona. Sevilla, too, are open to negotiations with Barça, so the fate of his transfer saga could depend on the final offer from the Catalan giants.

Chelsea have had their pursuit of Raphinha hijacked by Barcelona in the same fashion earlier this month and the Blues are determined to not become a victim a second time.

They are certainly not happy with Kounde’s decision to travel with the team and will be forcing even harder to squeeze a decision out of the defender before Barcelona come knocking on the door.