Chelsea make La Liga star priority in centre-back hunt: Fabrizio Romano

Chelsea are reportedly not yet done with business in the transfer market. The Blues are still on the lookout for a centre-back and Sevilla's Jules Kounde is on their radar.

According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea have agreed on personal terms with Kounde. However, the 22-year-old centre-back doesn't want to spoil his relationship with Sevilla and hence hasn't put in a transfer request.

Kounde still has three years left on his contract with the La Liga club and they could therefore hold out for a relatively higher fee. Whether or not Chelsea decide to go all-in for the defender remains to be seen.

Romano, speaking on his YouTube channel, revealed that Chelsea are still targeting a centre-back signing and Kounde is the top-most name on their list. He also hinted towards a possible player-plus-cash deal which could see Kurt Zouma go the other way.

“Chelsea signed [Romelu] Lukaku but they’re still looking for a centre-half. They want Kounde. They have an agreement on personal terms with the player but Kounde has been so professional with Sevilla that he’s not breaking his relationship with Sevilla.

“He’s still waiting to see what happens between the two clubs. At the moment, there is still no agreement in place with Chelsea and Sevilla on the price of the player.

“Chelsea want the centre-back, so in the next few days Chelsea will push again. Let’s see if Kurt Zouma will be part of the negotiation or not. Kounde is the priority for Chelsea at centre-back.”

Sevilla director Monchi on Chelsea-Koundé deal: “Many clubs have asked for Koundé. Of course there’s interest but no official bid on the table. I don’t know what’s gonna happen... if an important bid arrives, we’ll sell as this is our policy to improve the team”. 🔵 #CFC #Sevilla

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 11, 2021

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Romelu Lukaku returns to Chelsea after seven years

FC Internazionale Milano v Udinese Calcio - Serie A

Chelsea completed the signing of their former player Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan for a sum of €115 million. The Belgian has signed a five-year contract with the Blues.

Lukaku was presented to Chelsea fans in an open training session on Wednesday. The 28-year-old sounded upbeat about his second stint with the Premier League giants.

Lukaku never scored a Premier League goal for Chelsea in his previous stint and will be eager to change that statistic once he takes the field next.

"Even after 10 years it doesn’t feel new, everything still feels the same here. I’m very excited to play here in front of the fans, it’s nice to be back.

"It’s good to see you! Thank you for the welcome you gave me today, it is a lot of fun getting to say hello again and I can’t wait to see you all back here for a match when we play Aston Villa," Lukaku said as per the club's official website.

Let's get down to business! 👊

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 18, 2021