Chelsea ‘enter £20m talks with West Ham’ over transfer that affects Jules Kounde swap deal

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West Ham and Chelsea are in talks over a deal that could see Kurt Zouma move to east London, according to reports. The Hammers are looking to bring the France international across the capital as David Moyes looks to strengthen at central defence.

West Ham have already lost Fabian Balbuena and need to plug a gap in their squad.

Furthermore, the Irons will have to contend with balancing European football this season as they prepare to embark on their Europa League adventure.

While Zouma is of value to Thomas Tuchel, his playing time at Stamford Bridge is set to remain limited.

For that reason, Chelsea are open to offloading him this summer if the price is right.

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Roma, Crystal Palace and Wolves are among those to have expressed an interest.

According to Sky Sports, West Ham have now entered discussions with Chelsea over a £20million deal.

It’s understood the Hammers will have to pay more than that to sign him though.

Chelsea have been discussing the possibility of including Zouma in a deal for Sevilla defender Jules Kounde in the past few days.

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The Blues entered talks with the Andalusians earlier this week and have presented a player-plus-cash proposal.

Zouma could play Champions League football in Spain but it’s believed he would prefer to stay in London, where is settled.

Sevilla are believed to be holding out for around £50m for Kounde while Chelsea are attempting to negotiate cheaper than that price.

If they’re unable to include Zouma in a deal they could then use the money towards Kounde if they reach an agreement with West Ham over their defender.

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Tuchel wants to strengthen at the back but appreciates he may have to lose one in order to do so.

The club have already sold Fikayo Tomori to AC Milan on a permanent deal for £24m.

Yet with Antonio Rudiger expected to sign a new contract like Thiago Silva, Chelsea are stacked with options at the heart of defence.

Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen also finished the season strongly and Tuchel is expected to keep operating with his 3-4-2-1 system.

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