Barcelona's key to registering Dani Olmo?! Chelsea linked with stunning January swoop for star they previously made €65m bid for

Chelsea had already been interested in signing Kounde in the summer of 2022 from Sevilla and had come very close to completing the signing for a reported fee of €65 million (£55m/$66m) before Barcelona swooped in to sign the highly-rated Frenchman. The Blues have had a decent start to life under Enzo Maresca and the top brass is ready to help the Italian succeed by backing him in the January transfer window. As such, TBR Football have reported that Chelsea are now considering making a move for Kounde in January.

While Barcelona have almost eradicated their financial troubles after completing their new multi-billion deal with Nike, they still have issues adhering to La Liga's fair play rules due to their previous issues. As such, there have been doubts over being able to register Olmo for the second half of the season after already having struggled with the same in the summer, however, both the club and player have remained positive about being able to achieve the registration. If Barcelona were to sell Kounde to Chelsea in January, it would open up a load of space in their wage bill to easily fit Olmo's contract for the rest of the season.

The TBR Football report also suggested that Chelsea are monitoring Ronald Araujo's situation at Barcelona amid reports about a breakdown between the two sides over the last few months. However, over the last few weeks talks have begun again between the Uruguayan defender's camp and Barcelona, and an extension is now more likely than not.

The Blues have been looking to sign a centre-back in January and also a right-back amid Reece James' never-ending injury issues. With Kounde, Maresca will get a player who can comfortably fill in at both positions.