Sevilla sporting director Monchi has insisted that the club has not yet received any official bids for Chelsea-linked centre-back Jules Kounde.
Goal reported at the end of July that Chelsea had opened talks with Sevilla over a potential deal for Kounde, who has established himself among the top defenders in La Liga since moving to Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium from Bordeaux in 2019.
Real Madrid have also been strongly linked with the 22-year-old, but his current employers are holding out for an €80 million (£68m/$94m) fee, and Monchi claims that no formal offers have been submitted.
What's been said?
Pressed on Chelsea's interest in Kounde, the Sevilla chief has told the club's official media channel: “Many clubs have asked for Kounde. There’s interest, but no official bid on the table.
"To this day there has been no specific offer for him. I don’t know what’s going to happen. If an important bid arrives, we’ll sell, as this is our policy to improve the team."
Monchi added on whether the Frenchman will still be at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium come the end of the summer transfer window: "The Sevilla player wants to know what will happen.
"I don't know. But if there is no offer we believe we can reinvest, he will continue with us. His physical condition is very good."
Why do Chelsea want Kounde?
Chelsea set their sights on Kounde to provide extra cover at the back heading into the new season, and were originally planning to include Kurt Zouma in any final deal with Sevilla before the La Liga outfit made it clear that they will only consider a straight purchase.
The Blues still want to get Zouma off their books to reduce their overinflated squad, and are also set to loan Trevoh Chalobah to Valencia to make room for Kounde.
The France international has the experience and quality to compete with Andreas Christensen and Thiago Silva for a regular starting spot at Stamford Bridge, with it highly likely that he will only improve as he edges towards the prime years of his career.
Sevilla have finished in La Liga's top four in successive seasons while winning the 2019-20 Europa League with Kounde leading by example at the back, and he could slot perfectly into Thomas Tuchel's plans at Chelsea if they can push a transfer over the line.
