Chelsea remain interested in signing Jules Kounde from Sevilla this month as Thomas Tuchel looks to sure up his squad for the new season.
The Blues got off to a flying start at the weekend as they cruised past Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge, but there is still room for improvement in the squad.
Tuchel is a perfectionist and the German coach will not be satisfied until he has every area on the pitch covered in terms of squad depth and quality.
Despite having a wealth of defensive talent at his disposal, the Chelsea boss is still keen on adding another centre-back to the club before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.
Kounde is someone the Blues are very keen on, but are yet to make an offer for the France international, according to Sevilla chief Monchi.
Chelsea making an official offer for the 22-year-old could be somewhat dependent on whether they can offload Kurt Zouma for £25million.
West Ham United are interested in signing the French defender and have been in talks over a deal in recent weeks - and, according to the Evening Standard, the Hammers are 'not giving up' on their pursuit of the Blues centre-half.
However, there is a big problem for the east London club and one that could scupper a possible deal.
Zouma is reportedly demanding over £100,000-a-week, and with West Ham 'operating on a limited budget', the Chelsea defender will need to drop those demands for a deal to happen this month.
The 26-year-old has fallen down the pecking order under Tuchel and is said to be free to leave Chelsea before the window closes, but the aforementioned wage demands are proving to be a stumbling block.
The west London club may need to sell Zouma before they can make a move for Kounde, with Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations being considered by Chelsea, according to a report from 90Min earlier in the month.
The Blues are thought to be trying to find a solution to the FFP problems after just signing Romelu Lukaku for a club record £97.5m fee from Inter Milan.
But Sevilla want Chelsea to pay Kounde's £68m release clause if he is to depart the Spanish club this month.
Former Blues defender Frank Leboeuf recently insisted his old club do not need to sign Kounde.
Leboeuf told ESPN : "That’s a good question (whether they need to sign Kounde), that’s a very good question.
"I almost had tears in my eyes when I saw Trevoh Chalobah scoring, it was absolutely fantastic. He was very good in the Super Cup and was good against Crystal Palace.
"I’m very fond of that player and I have doubts that Chelsea need another defender. They already have lots of defenders and Chalobah is already on top of who we were thinking of.
"So what’s the point? Kounde is a fantastic player but you cannot make everyone happy so what’s the point having Chalobah, Zouma, Christensen, Rudiger, Thiago when most of them will be on the bench?"
