The representatives of Sevilla defender Jules Kounde have warned Chelsea that they must start making more of an effort to sign the Frenchman as talks continue to drag on, 90min understands.
Kounde has been among Chelsea’s top priorities for months now and, after an agreement over personal terms was reached last summer, he was expected to be among the club’s first pieces of business this time around.
Talks remain on between the two clubs but Sevilla are adamant they will not accept a reduced fee for the 23-year-old, who has two years remaining on his contract, and continue to point to his release clause of €80m (£69m).
90min understands Chelsea have been looking to strike a deal at closer to the £50m mark but Sevilla have rebuffed such offers and sources close to the player have confirmed that his representatives are less than impressed with the Blues’ reluctance to increase their bid.
Kounde’s camp have made it clear to Chelsea that he does still want to move to Stamford Bridge but they have warned the Premier League side that they need to do more to get this deal over the line, especially with rival interest from Barcelona.
Chelsea are not particularly concerned by Barcelona’s interest and believe they are still leading the race for his signature, but the Blues are not best pleased by the prospect of getting into a bidding war.
Should Barcelona ramp up Kounde’s price, or even beat Chelsea to his signature, then that could impact the London club’s willingness to do business with Barca later in the window, with Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta both still keen on moves to Camp Nou.
Despite Barca’s threat, Chelsea still hope to get a deal for Kounde wrapped up in the coming weeks, but they will have to increase their bid if they are to convince Sevilla to sell.
