Barcelona register Jules Kounde, defender available for Real Valladolid clash – Ornstein

In a huge boost for Barcelona, David Ornstein of The Athletic is reporting that the Catalan club have completed the registration of defender Jules Kounde. The 23-year-old is set to be available for the La Liga clash against Real Valladolid on Sunday.

Barça were able to complete the registration process for six of their seven unregistered stars in time for their La Liga season opener against Rayo Vallecano, with Kounde being the unlucky one to miss out.

The Blaugrana were unable to get the registration done last week either, which meant that he missed the second game of the campaign versus Real Sociedad and is yet to make his official debut for the club.

However, now, Barcelona seem to have finally managed to register Kounde, with Ornstein now reporting that the French international is likely to be available for the game against Real Valladolid in a couple of days.

Kounde was one of Xavi’s top targets this summer and Barcelona fought off interest from Chelsea to sign him up in a deal worth €50 million last month.

The 23-year-old has established himself as one of the most promising and reliable young defenders in La Liga over the past couple of seasons. Having him available should be a huge boost for the Blaugrana.

The departure of Samuel Umtiti, who joined Lecce on loan earlier this week, coupled with the reduction of add-ons from contracts of some of the current players is believed to have enabled Kounde’s registration.

La Liga are giving the green light to add him to the squad, without the club having to sell any more players. An official confirmation could arrive in the coming hours or latest by Saturday morning, according to Spanish media.