Liverpool ‘make an offer for Jules Kounde’ but Barcelona are demanding £50m for the France defender

Liverpool have reportedly made an offer for Barcelona defender Jules Kounde.

Jurgen Klopp is eager to bring Kounde to Anfield, with the 24-year-old open to leaving Barcelona this summer.

Kounde joined Barcelona from Sevilla last year for £46million and has made 38 appearances for the club, which has included being part of a LaLiga-winning side.

However, Kounde is said to be disappointed that he has often been used out of position at right-back, while he prefers to play as a centre-back. 

Barcelona are looking to lower their wage bill, but won’t accept less than £52million for Kounde. 

Jurgen Klopp is reportedly eager to bring France international Kounde to Anfield this summer

Kounde started the campaign well but his performance levels have dropped and he isn’t happy that president Joan Laporta hasn’t backed up his promise to let him play in his preferred position. 

Although Liverpool missed out on a place in the Champions League, Kounde could still be tempted by the prospect of playing for the club.

However, Liverpool have a lot of centre-backs at their disposal, including Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, so it isn’t guaranteed that Kounde would get regular playing time at the heart of the defence if he did join.

In addition, there would be little chance of Kounde getting frequent minutes at right-back with Trent Alexander-Arnold firmly established as Liverpool’s first choice in that position.

Kounde started his senior career at Bordeaux before joining Sevilla in 2019 and then signing for Barcelona three years later. 

He has been capped by France on 20 occasions and featured at the World Cup in Qatar last year. 

Kounde wants to leave Barcelona as he is frustrated at often being used out of position