According to Football.London, there is ‘no truth’ in Tottenham Hotspur pursuing a move for Sevilla defender Jules Kounde despite recent links.
The Lowdown: Contrasting claims
Premier League side Chelsea, alongside Paris Saint-Germain are believed to be considering a deal for the 23-year-old, with the Lilywhites supposedly having joined them in the race for his signature.
The Mirror then claimed on Wednesday that Antonio Conte’s side were in pole position to secure the centre-back’s services having ‘jumped towards the front of the queue’ over their competitors, but contrary to those reports, that doesn’t appear to have been the case at all.
The Latest: Latest transfer news
Football.London are now claiming that there is ‘no truth’ in the rumours linking Kounde with a switch to Tottenham, suggesting that any potential deal would have ‘raised the question’ of where he would fit in.
The source states that whilst the Frenchman would be a ‘good option’ for the Italian boss, it’s ‘likely’ that he only would have found himself as ‘second choice’, given the recent form of Cristian Romero.
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The Verdict: Not worth the fee
Whilst Kounde is a highly-rated player, it’s believed that he has a £76m release clause in his contract at Sevilla, and for someone who potentially wouldn’t be a regular starter every week, it’s definitely not worth splashing the cash.
Conte still has the likes Davinson Sanchez and Japhet Tanganga as backups in that right-sided centre-back position, despite the latter being linked with a summer exit, so has plenty of squad depth to fall back on if anything were to happen to Romero.
Even if the boss does want to bolster his ranks further, there are bound to be some other suitable transfer targets out there who would be cheaper, and it could prove wise to go down the route of the loan or free agent market, just as he did with Clement Lenglet and Ivan Perisic.