According to Manu Sainz of Spanish media outlet AS, Chelsea are now very close to signing Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde.

The French defender, with a release clause of £68million, was a key target for the Blues last summer as Chelsea aimed to bolster our back line.

Following Todd Boehly’s arrival, Chelsea moved onto other defensive targets like Nathan Ake and Matthijs de Ligt of Juventus.

However, with the Blues unable to reach an agreement with Manchester City for Ake and De Ligt keen on joining Bayern Munich, Chelsea have moved quickly to beat Barcelona for the France defender.

Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui has also admitted that Jules Kounde could well leave the club this summer amid Chelsea interest.

“One very important player, Diego Carlos, left, and maybe the other starting centre back (Jules Kounde) will too,” said Lopetegui.

“We don’t know what will happen. They are difficult to replace and we will have to help Marcao adapt quickly to what’s demanded of him.”