Barça have a crush on Koundé, but…
It has been two mercatos, last January and last summer, that Sevilla FC has retained Jules Koundé.
The daily
Sport
affirms this Monday that FC Barcelona dreams more than ever of the French defender (23 years old), coach Xavi being particularly a fan of the player.
But he is an "
impossible dream
" for Barça.
Sport
recalls that Chelsea offered €60m to Sevilla this winter, but the Andalusian club insisted on Koundé's release clause, set at €80m.
As it stands, Barça would absolutely not have the budget to approach the former Bordeaux player.
Just a year ago, the Spanish press ignited the future of Koundé, evoking a Barça-Real Madrid duel.
Since then, Chelsea have made great progress on the file of a player under contract until 2024 in Seville, runner-up to Real in La Liga.
SEE ALSO –
Koundé's pretty goal against Zaragoza in the King's Cup on January 6 (0-2)
Bordeaux: Petkovic thanked this week?
According to the newspaper
L'Équipe
, Vladimir Petkovic lived his last match on the bench of the Girondins de Bordeaux on Sunday.
His players were humiliated on the lawn of the Stade de Reims (5-0), less than a month after another slap received in Rennes (6-0).
The Swiss coach (58) is heading for a dismissal before the trip to Lens next Sunday.
It remains to find an agreement on the financial plan.
"
A coach with a different profile should arrive
," says
L'Équipe
.
Bordeaux ranks 19th in Ligue 1 after 23 days.
Chelsea: "
positive discussions
" with Rüdiger?
For several months, Chelsea feared losing their central defender Antonio Rüdiger, at the end of the contract next June.
This weekend, the
Daily Mail
told us that the German defender (28) was a priority for the Blues, but the player would have refused a salary of 11 M€/year.
His entourage, contacted by
The Athletic
, did not deny this information, but assures that "
positive discussions
" exist with Chelsea.
Rüdiger would like to see his annual salary rise to €12m, not to mention a signing bonus.
Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are said to be among the courtiers at Rüdiger.
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Barca accelerate Azpilicueta and Christensen (Chelsea)
If Thiago Silva has extended until 2023 at Chelsea, this is not the case for Rüdiger, as we have seen.
This is not the case with two other Blues defenders either: César Azpilicueta (32) and Andreas Christensen (25).
The two players have been targeted by FC Barcelona for a while, and according to the Catalan newspaper
Sport
, the Blaugrana club want to close these files quickly.
They can already sign a pre-contract with the club of their choice for next season.
Regarding Azpilicueta, a Spanish international, an agreement for a lease until 2025 has already been found.
For Christensen, both sides are playing patience, even if the Dane would give priority to Barça.
SEE ALSO –
The impressive regularity of Azpilicueta at Chelsea
Sebastian Giovinco to Sampdoria
Without a club for six months and the end of his contract at Al-Hilal, in Saudi Arabia, Sebastian Giovinco should make his comeback in Italy.
Sky Sport Italia
report that the pocket striker (1m64) is due to sign a contract with Sampdoria on Monday.
It will compensate for the serious injury to the left knee of Manolo Gabbiadini.
Former Italian international, Giovinco (35) made Juventus happy until 2015, before leaving for Toronto and MLS across the Atlantic, where he spent four seasons before Al-Hilal.
