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After collapsed Spurs swap, £59m player is reportedly 95% sure to join Chelsea now

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Jules Kounde to Chelsea is reportedly almost guaranteed to happen – and Tottenham Hotspur will be disappointed to see it materialise.

Tottenham are in the market for a central defender this summer.

On Saturday, it was reported that an Inter official had flown into London to discuss with Fabio Paratici how serious Spurs are about signing Alessandro Bastoni.

The truth is, the Lilywhites wouldn’t need to be strengthening this position had they signed the Chelsea-bound defender last summer.

According to journalist Graeme Bailey, speaking to the Si and Dan Chelsea podcast on Thursday, the French powerhouse is almost certainly joining Thomas Tuchel’s side.

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Bailey said: “Jules Kounde will come in, we know that’s happening. He wants to go to Chelsea. This is 95% done.”

Tottenham supporters won’t have forgotten the name Kounde yet.

That’s because 10 months ago, it was them, not the Blues, who were signing the Sevilla defender.

According to Di Marzio at the time, Paratici had struck an agreement with the Spanish outfit to bring the 23-year-old to North London in exchange for Davinson Sanchez, only for Kounde himself to ruin the swap by snubbing the transfer [Marca].

That will have hurt Spurs at the time, but considering he is now set to join arguably their second-biggest rivals, well that’ll definitely open old wounds for the likes of Paratici and Daniel Levy.

Jules Kounde to Chelsea is likely to set the Blues back a cool £59 million but, considering his age, profile and improving ability, well that could be considered a bargain in years to come.

And it would’ve been an even bigger steal had Tottenham successfully swapped him for Sanchez last year.

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