Arsenal may be in the market for a defender this summer, and a surprise name has now emerged as a possible target.
Mikel Arteta built the strongest defence in the Premier League this season, with William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes forming a rock-solid centre-back partnership.
Saliba played every minute of the Premier League campaign, and with Arsenal falling apart in the title race a year ago after the Frenchman was struck down by injury, some are concerned that there may not be enough cover for him.
An option to help in this regard may have now appeared in Saliba’s France Euro 2024 teammate in Barcelona defender Jules Kounde, whom Arteta was keen on three years ago.
Arsenal ‘interested’ in Barcelona defender Jules Kounde
Barcelona journalist Gerard Romero has now revealed that Arsenal are exploring the idea of signing Kounde, but the Blaugrana will only accept a huge fee.
“Arsenal are interested in Jules Kounde. Barca say he will not leave unless there’s a big offer, but they are also waiting to see what will happen with Ronald Araujo,” he stated on a Twitch stream.
Kounde joined Barcelona in 2022 for around £50m, and this came a year after Arteta was reportedly interested in bringing him to the Emirates from Sevilla.
Arsenal then signed Ben White that summer, and the Englishman has gone on to excel at both centre-back and right-back, in a similar way to how Kounde has performed at Barcelona.
Arsenal move for Jules Kounde would be a surprise
Kounde has performed superbly at times for Barcelona, mostly lining up at right-back, but seemingly preferring a centre-back role.
Former Barcelona manager Xavi heaped praise on the 25-year-old after Kounde delivered an outstanding performance against Paris Saint-Germain, nullifying the threat of Kylian Mbappe in the Champions League in April.
“He was one of the transfers that I asked for. He’s one of the best defenders in the world right now. Stopping Mbappe was a collective effort. Kounde did amazing against Mbappe, but Lamine [Yamal] also helped him a lot,” Xavi stated of Kounde.
Despite his quality, it seems that a huge fee will be needed to sign Kounde. With White able to cover for Saliba and starting on the right already, it seems like a move which is unlikely to happen, even if Arsenal are continuing to keep tabs on him for the future.