Chelsea: Jules Kounde only the tip of the centerback iceberg

Chelsea is full steam ahead for Jules Kounde. Even if Kurt Zouma isn’t included, the Blues are committed to him in and he’s just the tip of the iceberg. The defense of Chelsea could look very different within just a season and Kounde is simply the first member of that transition.

As things stand, Zouma is the only current centerback contracted past this coming season. He’s also currently the most expendable and most likely to move this window. Kounde would be a good replacement that could one day be much more, but he doesn’t solve all the issues Chelsea is running into.

First of all, Cesar Azpilicueta and Thiago Silva could both choose to extend as long as they like, in theory. So long as the club sticks to back three (which seems likely), Azpilicueta is a near sure starter. Silva, meanwhile, could realistically extend another year or two and keep a similar level of play. If both players retired at Chelsea, no one would have any issues.

Andreas Christensen is an interesting case. Obviously the club rates him highly because he was kept around even when he wasn’t playing. His current renaissance seems to be the culmination of that trust. He hasn’t extended and needs to, but he’s been at Chelsea virtually his entire career. On paper, he might be the highest value defender should the club put him on the market but there has been on indication of that whatsoever.

Then there is Antonio Rudiger. He’s easily the most in form centerback at the moment. But if he doesn’t extend this window, Chelsea is already running the risk of letting him go for free. Even with his current form, there is little evidence that it is legit this time or if he’ll come back down like before. Furthermore, he wants to become one of the club’s top earners and his next contract locks him in until past his prime. Chelsea is between a rock and a hard place with him at the moment.

So as things stand, Chelsea is looking to move their defender on the longest contract to bring Kounde in. He’s one for the future, but with Silva, Azpilicueta, Christensen, and Rudiger all running out of time as well, the club must continue to get more centerbacks. That is perhaps part of the thinking for Kounde. He isn’t a need at the moment, but the centerback pool is so shallow that getting him now while he’s available makes a lot of sense regardless of price.

That’s also why players like Marc Guehi leaving is so frustrating. He couldn’t see the pathway before him and if Chelsea was unable to show it when four players are out of contract soon, that’s an issue. It further puts pressure on the team to make transfer signings that are hard to come by. Chelsea may have scouted Kounde for a while, but don’t forget they only really started pushing for him after Tottenham stopped.

Kounde is the tip of the iceberg (if he signs) because he almost certainly has to be. Chelsea has to extend these current players or bring in several centerbacks next summer. It is very likely the Chelsea defense has a completely new contingent next season and Kounde is just the first.