Chelsea Transfer News Roundup: Blues blamed for Jules Kounde transfer failure; club agree personal terms with Leicester City defender, and more - July 30, 2022

Chelsea scripted a 3-1 win over Udinese at the Dacia Arena in a pre-season friendly on Friday. Goals from N'Golo Kante, Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount helped manager Thomas Tuchel get back to winning ways in pre-season.

Meanwhile, Sevilla sporting director Monchi has blamed the Blues for their failure to land Jules Kounde. Elsewhere, the London giants have agreed personal terms with a Leicester City defender.

On that note, here's a look at the key Chelsea transfer stories as on July 30, 2022:

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Monchi blames Chelsea for Jules Kounde transfer failure

Jules Kounde moved to the Camp Nou this week.

Monchi has laid the blame on Chelsea for missing out on Jules Kounde. Tuchel was hot on the heels of the Frenchman, but he joined Barcelona instead.

Speaking to Sevilla's website, Monchi said that the Blues' indecision cost them the player.

"On Thursday night, Kounde was ‘sold’ to Chelsea, for a fee accepted by all parties. They began to have doubts and pulled out. Due to situations that arise sometimes, no matter how long you've been in this world, there was some movement at Chelsea that made them doubt whether they needed a player with Kounde's profile," said Monchi.

Monchi added that the Premier League side were unsure whether the player would fit their tactics despite agreeing a verbal deal with Sevilla.

"There were more suitors for Kounde at the beginning of the market than at the end, and above all, the one who has stayed is Chelsea, who in the last month have kept us busy and negotiating to the point that last Thursday we reached a verbal agreement and so did the player," said Monchi.

He added Barcelona capitalised on Chelsea's indecision by putting up a better offer to land the player:

"Football never ceases to surprise you. Chelsea began to have doubts and pulled out. They didn't doubt Jules' quality but his place within the squad. Everything stopped over the weekend, and then Barcelona appeared."

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Blues agree personal terms with Wesley Fofana

Wesley Fofana is wanted at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues have agreed personal terms with Wesley Fofana, according to journalist Ignazio Genuardi via The Hard Tackle. Tuchel remains eager to add more steel to his backline this summer. The club's pursuit of Kounde ended in disappointment, prompting them to turn their attention to alternate targets.

Fofana has popped up on their wishlist, and the London giants have already agreed personal terms with the Leicester City defender. The Foxes have no intentions of letting him leave and value him in excess of £70 million. The Blues are likely to submit a formal bid for the 21-year-old.

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Thomas Tuchel pleased with performances of new signings

Raheem Sterling was on the score sheet against Udinese.

Thomas Tuchel is pleased with the performances of Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly against Udinese. Both players caught the eye as the Blues made light work of the Serie A side.

Speaking after the game, Tuchel said that there were a lot of positives to take away from the game.

"Yeah, we trained a lot this week, especially two days ago, so we did not have the freshest legs. But we have a lot of positive things to take away from this game, I think. It’s a good performance, good result. We could have scored much more, should have scored much more, but there’s a lot of positive stuff to take away," said Tuchel.

The German manager went on to express satisfaction at Sterling's performance.

"Of course, he had chances, was heavily involved in other chances. It was a good performance," said Tuchel.

Tuchel also reserved special praise for Koulibaly, who's already being serenaded by fans.

"He deserves (it). He’s a very, very good signing, a strong personality, a strong player. I’m happy he could play 70 minutes; he’s getting fitter and fitter, which is very important for us at the start of the season," said Tuchel.