Sevilla have confirmed Chelsea target Jules Kounde will undergo surgery in France today on a minor pelvis injury, but the centre-back is expected to be fit in a matter of weeks and should be available for the start of the 2022/23 season.
Kounde has been Chelsea's first-choice defensive target for almost a year – and a move for the 23-year-old was first launched last summer. However, a deal for the France international was put on the backburner while Romelu Lukaku's signing from Inter Milan was completed, and Sevilla then raised their asking price.
That forced the Blues to postpone Kounde's arrival rather than abandon their interest; it was hoped his transfer would finally be secured this month following France's four Nations League games, for which Kounde was selected despite his pre-existing injury.
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Kounde started for France last night in their 1-0 defeat to Croatia but didn't complete the 90 minutes. And after the match, Didier Deschamps revealed the defender would be undergoing pre-planned surgery to fix an issue that had been present for the majority of the campaign.
Speaking to French outlet L'Equipe, the French head coach said: "I know very well his athletic condition today. Tomorrow, he will have a [surgical] intervention because he has a problem that dates from several months ago."
That surgery has now been confirmed by Sevilla – and the La Liga side have stressed that if all goes to plan, Kounde will not be sidelined for a prolonged period.
Their statement read: "As was scheduled several weeks ago, Jules Kounde will undergo an operation on Tuesday in Bordeaux for a minor pelvis injury. In principle, if everything goes as expected, the French international will be available for the start of the 2022/23 season."
Chelsea's need for defensive reinforcements this summer was intensified following the departures of both Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen on free transfers. The former has completed a move to Real Madrid, while the latter's move to Barcelona is expected to be confirmed in the coming days.
Given the time the Blues have put into their deal for Kounde – and the fact the Frenchman has verbally agreed on a move to Stamford Bridge – his signing this summer is still expected. And there are still three-and-a-half weeks to go until the Chelsea players who were away on international duty report back for pre-season.
