La Liga giants FC Barcelona signed French international center-back Jules Kounde at the start of the season after paying €50m to Spanish club Sevilla.
Kounde made a good start and soon became a key player for the Blaugrana at the heart of their defence.
However, the Frenchman then suffered a hamstring injury in the last international window while playing for Frenc in a match against Denmark. He missed the last matches against Mallorca and Inter Milan. Barcelona suffered a defeat against the Italian and won by a very small margin against Mallorca.
However, finally, the Blaugrana have received good news regarding the state of form of the French defender.
Barcelona could recover Koundé before the match against Inter Milan
According to a recent report by Spanish journalist Toni Juanmarti, Barcelona may have the French defender on their back as early as Inter Milan’s next game. The player is fine at the moment and, if he continues like this, he will be in contention for the match against Inter Milan.
Barcelona is currently going through an injury crisis. In addition to Kunde, Araujo, Christensen and Bellerin are also injured. The only centre-backs in form available to them are Eric GarcÃa and Gerrard Piqué.
Barcelona now has a very tight schedule this month. After his defeat against Inter Milan, he cannot have any more setbacks in the Champions League. So the next home game against Inter is very important.
In addition to the match against Inter, Barcelona will face arch-rival and defending La Liga champions Real Madrid in the Spanish league. This match will potentially decide the outcome of the league.
So if Kounde manages to recover from his injuries, it will be a huge boost for the Blaugrana. Meanwhile, Koundé is also a key member of the France team.
He is expected to be part of the team that will defend the World Cup title in Qatar. So Deschamps would like his defense to have playing time before the tournament.
More good news for Barça
Apart from Koundé, there is more good news for Barcelona fans. Dutch midfielder Frenkie De Jong has returned from injury and was seen training with the team. De Jong also gives Xavi an option in the central position.
Atletico Barcelona (reserve team) 19-year-old defender Chadi Riyad will be called up from the main squad ahead of Celta Vigo’s next game on Friday. This will be a great opportunity for the young defender to impress Xavi and get a chance in the first team.
