Tottenham shoot themselves in foot, as interest sees target handed steep transfer fee
Sevilla have reportedly placed a €70million (£60million) price tag on defender Jules Kounde after an approach by Tottenham.
The 22-year-old has caught the eye of many other Premier League clubs including Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea.
But it seems as though the centre-half will not be leaving Spain this summer, according to Marca.
It reports that after the setting the purchase price for Kounde, the club is confident in keeping their key player.
In fact, Spurs’ acquisition of the imminent arrival of winger Bryan Gil from Sevilla pushed Kounde’s asking price up.
Tottenham are expected to announce Gil’s transfer very soon. The deal will reportedly see Erik Lamela go the other way with Sevilla also banking an added £25.6million (€30million) on the balance sheets.
This extra income has provided a financial boost to the Spanish club who no longer need to sell their most prized assets after a cash-strapped year due to the pandemic.
Thus, Sevilla have upped their selling price for Kounde. The defender has previously outlined his ambitions to move to a bigger European club, including a transfer to Tottenham.
But will now likely stay in Seville for the time being. The hike in acquisition cost is thought to have put off potential buyers, including Tottenham.
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Kounde an exciting prospect
There is good reason why Europe’s elite have been circling around Kounde. The blockade has played 89 times for Sevilla since his move from Bordeaux in July 2019.
In two years, he has guided the club to back-to-back Champions League qualification.
In his first season with the club, he won the Europa League as the Sevilla beat Inter Milan 3-2. He played the whole 90 minutes at just 21-years-old.
Last season, Kounde played 34 La Liga games, scoring twice and providing one assist.
He earned his France international senior debut in February’s 3-0 friendly win over Wales. His next appearance came at Euro 2020 when he played the whole game at right-back in France’s 2-2 group stage draw with Portugal.
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