Chelsea react with fangs bared to FC Barcelona's bid for Koundé
The Blues have retaliated by blocking negotiations for the transfer of Marcos Alonso, and are unlikely to continue the negotiations on Azpilicueta either
The signing of Marcos Alonso by FC Barcelona hit a roadblock just when things looked to be on track. Chelsea have decided to block the operation, as well as the negotiations for César Apilicueta, in reply to Barça's move to sign Jules Koundé.
Barça and Chelsea have crossed paths repeatedly in this transfer window, whether it's to talk about possible deals, like the transfers of Marcos and Azpilicueta, or to clash for the same players, as with Ousmane Dembélé. Barça also got Andreas Christensen who, instead of renewing for the Blues, went to the Spanish club as a free transfer.
And now the tensions have risen again with their tug of war for Koundé's services. Chelsea closed a deal with Sevilla that benefited both the clubs, but the French central defender wants to join Barça and is doing everything possible from his end, and may well have succeeded. Koundé may most likely be the next signing of Mateu Alemany, aiding Xavi Hernandez's requests.
However, the London club reacted angrily, believing that Barça is interfering with their signing of reinforcements even as they attempted to recruit Marcos Alonso and Azpilicueta from the London club.
Thomas Tuchel was reluctant to let César Azpilicueta leave and moved to block the transfer of the Navarre centre-back. Despite everything, Barça hoped that they could still close the signing of Marcos Alonso when they returned to Europe after the American tour, only for Chelsea to block this one as well.
It poses a problem for Barça, who are presently trying to reinforce their defensive line with the arrival of Koundé and the two Chelsea defenders. They still have a hole to fill with Dest being the only senior right-back in the squad.
