Tuchel pleased for Chalobah after first Chelsea goal
Jules Kounde has reportedly asked Sevilla to agree a deal with Chelsea to let him move to Stamford Bridge. The French defender is understood to be keen on making the move to west London after the two clubs entered negotiations three weeks ago.
However, talks soon stagnated after Chelsea proposed the inclusion of Kurt Zouma in a player-plus-cash deal.
It's understood Zouma would prefer to stay in England if he was to leave Chelsea this summer with West Ham and Tottenham among those credited with interest.
Chelsea then focused their efforts on the signing of Romelu Lukaku and a club-record deal worth £97.5million was soon agreed with Inter Milan.
The European champions were then expected to revisit negotiations with Sevilla for Kounde but that still hasn't happened as of yet.
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The centre-back remains contracted to Sevilla until 2024 meaning the club are in no rush to sell if their £60m valuation isn't met.
Yet while Chelsea have been focused on landing Lukaku, there is one player that may just have changed Thomas Tuchel's mind.
It's no secret that Trevoh Chalobah has made a big impression in pre-season and he may just have saved Chelsea millions on a new defender.
The academy graduate impressed against the likes of Bournemouth and Arsenal before being given the nod to start the Super Cup triumph over Villarreal.
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Jules Kounde has reportedly told Sevilla he wants to join Chelsea (Image: GETTY)
That was then backed up with a pile-driver on his first Premier League start against Crystal Palace on the opening day of the season last Saturday.
Chalobah's form could see Chelsea place their interest on Kounde on hold for now although it could be revisited further down the line with Thiago Silva in the final year of his contract.
Chelsea have already sold Fikayo Tomori to AC Milan on a permanent deal and Zouma could follow him out the door.
The Blues are only likely to pursue Kounde again this summer if Zouma leaves and that is still a realistic possibility.