- Aug 5, 2013
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From the opening three statements in the article:For those who don’t know much about Kounde, this is a really good article and analysis on him:
Player Analysis: Jules Koundé
From Aymeric Laporte to Raphaël Varane, from Presnel Kimpembe to Dayot Upamecano, there isn’t a single nation in the world that can hold a candle to France’s center back depth, and the next name in France’s laundry list of elite center backs is 21-year-old Jules Koundé. After rising up...breakingthelines.com
"(..) there isn’t a single nation in the world that can hold a candle to France’s center back depth"
Yet France arguably had the worst centre backs of the final 16 in the Euros this summer: their defence and especially their centre backs were - if not abysmal - at least very, very far from being "elite" or "top class".
"After rising up Bordeaux’s academy and breaking into manager Gus Poyet’s starting eleven, Koundé earned a €25 million move to Sevilla in the summer of 2019, where he would link up with Diego Carlos, who arrived from Nantes in the same window for €15 million. The two would go on to form a rock-solid duo in the heart of Julen Lopetegui’s defense, as Sevilla finished fourth and won the UEFA Europa League."
"While Carlos, 27, may have scared off suitors due to his erratic defending and cringeworthy mistakes, as he conceded three penalties in the final three rounds of Europa, Koundé’s reputation and price tag has only grown in the final months of the season."
How can a centre back duo be "rock ´-solid" and at the same time have "erratic defending and cringeworthy mistakes"?
Some of the examples in the article to prove his abilities are somewhat odd tbh: to beat Arturo Vidal in a duel is hardly proof of, well anything really.