Barca’s Deco reveals – Man City were interested in Kounde

Manchester City were in discussions with Barcelona over the course of the summer for securing the services of Jules Kounde. The Frenchman is regarded among the top right-backs in the world and has consistently provided emphatic performances for the Catalans and the French national team.

Talking to Spanish daily, Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona’s sporting director, Deco, confirmed that the Citizens did enquire about the availability of Jules Kounde. Manchester City have been on the lookout for a new right-back following the departure of Kyle Walker.

The Manchester-based club relied on the services of Kyle Walker for seven and a half years before the defender decided to move on with his career. Earlier this year, in January, Walker completed his move away from Etihad Stadium when he joined AC Milan on loan. The player joined Burnley on a permanent deal over the summer period.

What is the right-back situation at Manchester City?

Manchester City supporters were not entirely convinced of their team’s decision not to go hunting in the transfer market to bolster the right-back position. Pep Guardiola has deployed Rico Lewis, Matheus Nunes and Abdukodir Khusanov at the right-back slot since the departure of Walker. Lewis does seem comfortable playing in that role, but Nunes and Khusanov have had to undergo the hard hours to slot in. With a slow start to the season, it might be a matter of time before Pep is compelled to add some depth to his defensive line. The new and revised Champions League format also does not allow much room for error.

Can City sign Kounde in the future?

During the conversation with the Spanish media outlet, Deco stated that he was involved in a candid conversation with his counterpart at Manchester City, Hugo Viana. The Portuguese director further shed light on the healthy relationship that the two clubs share, without the involvement of any intermediaries. Barcelona sporting director, Deco, has been quoted as saying by TeamTalk –

“The only thing I do know is that City, and now there’s Hugo Viana and before that there was Txiki (Begiristain), were looking for a full-back, and of course they asked us if Kounde was on the market. And we told them no.

So there was no offer or any negotiation. It’s like if I knew a sporting director at a club and I would call them and ask why we were looking in that position and if you think or are considering whether it’s for sale…

As we’ve said from the beginning, the relationship with City, with Txiki, and now with Hugo Viana, who is my friend, is good and direct, without any intermediaries that don’t exist.”

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Manchester City could not land Jules Kounde from Barcelona, but the positive relationship shared between the directors of the two clubs keeps the possibility of future transfers on the cards. The Citizens have been consistently linked with several Barcelona stars, given Pep Guardiola himself is a La Masia graduate. Players like Pedri, Gavi, Fermin Lopez and Dani Olmo have all been attributed with moves to Manchester City.