Barcelona Showing Interest In This La Liga Defender: Should Xavi Get Him On Board?

In a recent report, Sport mentioned that Barcelona are showing interest in Sevilla defender Jules Kounde. It is understood that the Catalans will have to compete with Chelsea in the race to recruit the French centre-back during the summer transfer window.

Kounde’s Impressive Season At The Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium

Kounde has enjoyed another solid campaign at Seville as he has continued to perform at a high level while acting at the centre of Julen Lopetegui’s defence. The 23-year-old has played in 25 matches for the Andalusian outfit this season, scoring one goal and grabbing one assist across all competitions.

The Paris-born talent has been a rock at the back based on his average of 0.9 tackles, 0.7 interceptions and 2.7 clearances per 90 minutes in La Liga. He has even been excellent when distributing the ball in the final third after completing 89% of his attempted passes in the Spanish first division (stats via whoscored).

Should Barcelona Boss Xavi Get Kounde On Board?

Kounde is a solid tackler of the ball and can sense the danger quickly to make some crucial interceptions on the defensive end of the field. He usually doesn’t take too many risks when clearing the danger inside his half.

The French centre-back is proficient at playing his way out from the back and can even create a few decent chances for his teammates in the final third. Kounde has got the right mindset to be a success story in European football. He is primarily a central defender but can also fill in as a right-back when needed.

At 23, Kounde will only get better with each season, so Barca should think about getting him on board during the summer transfer period. He has got what it takes to serve as a perfect, long-term successor to Gerard Pique, who has entered the twilight years of his playing career.

The Paris-born defensive ace will definitely improve Xavi‘s defence considerably and could even help the Catalan giants secure top-four football in the coming seasons. Therefore, Barca would be wise to engineer a move to bring Kounde to the Nou Camp in the summer.