%20rotate(-8.06)%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22336.19%20136.81%20330.16%2094.25%20326.06%2071.19%20326.44%2071.13%20335.22%2093.54%20352.29%20134.52%20373.95%20131.46%20362.7%2052.01%20350.02%2053.8%20356.05%2096.36%20360.15%20119.42%20359.77%20119.48%20350.99%2097.08%20333.91%2056.09%20312.25%2059.15%20323.51%20138.6%20336.19%20136.81%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22402.91%2059.3%20412.36%20126.02%20427.17%20123.92%20417.72%2057.21%20431.59%2055.24%20429.79%2042.51%20387.23%2048.53%20389.04%2061.27%20402.91%2059.3%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22463.51%20118.77%20458.69%2084.71%20474.68%2082.44%20479.51%20116.5%20494.36%20114.4%20483.11%2034.95%20468.26%2037.06%20472.96%2070.25%20456.96%2072.52%20452.26%2039.32%20437.4%2041.43%20448.65%20120.88%20463.51%20118.77%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22540.5%20107.87%20538.77%2095.68%20518.91%2098.49%20515.77%2076.29%20535.63%2073.47%20533.93%2061.5%20514.07%2064.32%20511.11%2043.42%20530.98%2040.61%20529.25%2028.42%20494.53%2033.34%20505.78%20112.78%20540.5%20107.87%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22299.03%20155.17%20301.29%20171.58%20542.78%20138.39%20540.5%20121.97%20299.03%20155.17%22%2F%3E%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E)
Arsenal and Chelsea are thought to be interested in the valuable Barcelona defender, Jules Kounde. In fact, the Gunners are willing to spend £65m on him.
Arsenal has one of the best defensive units in world football. With key players Gabriel Magalhaes, Ben White and William Saliba making names for themselves in recent seasons, they have been joined this season by the likes of Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly. Heck, even Jakub Kiwior is the man of the moment right now, after that display against Real Madrid.
However, Mikel Arteta is the type of manager who is proud, but never satisfied. If anything, the season-ending injury to Gabriel Magalhaes would have proven that more reinforcements need to be signed. While the Gunners have done a good job of ensuring the injury doesn't derail their season, it is concerning that one injury could leave them significantly weaker on paper.
Now, there's a catch-22. While the Gunners want to sign a defender to play backup, they need to find a player who is good enough to slot into this world-class defence without the guarantee of first-team action week in, week out.
The dilemma hasn't stopped Arsenal from trying.
Arsenal could offer £65m to sign Jules Kounde from Barcelona
According to a report from Fichajes, Arsenal is one of two Premier League clubs (alongside Chelsea) to show an interest in signing Jules Kounde from Barcelona. In fact, the Gunners are "willing to offer 75 million euros" (£65m) to sign Kounde.
For Barcelona, it's a sticky situation. Yes, they have gone from strength to strength this season, but they could be forced into a position of selling their best players. Due to their need to balance the books financially, the Catalan side might need to make decisions they wouldn't otherwise make.
In normal circumstances, Jules Kounde would be on the do-not-touch pile. He is a key player and one that has been integral to Barcelona's improvement under Hansi Flick. Having played in some capacity in all 31 of Barca's league games this season, it is now hard to imagine a Barcelona side without Kounde.
Enter Arsenal. While we might be slightly (completely) biased, Arsenal is a much more attractive destination than Chelsea. At least at the Emirates Stadium, Kounde can remember the names in the roster much faster than he would at Stamford Bridge, which has the squad with the same population as a small country. So, Kounde, you know you want to...