Jose Ramon Alexanco he broke a record when Barça paid 100 million pesetas for him (1980) to Athletic. With ROnald Koeman crossed the barrier of 1,000 million pesetas (1988) and Jules Kounde has exceeded the 50 million euros. A new bar, symbolic, knocked down. But with the French defender, history has not been made in football, nor is Barça the richest in the place.
Koundé It is, yes, in the range of the ten most expensive centers in the world. Perhaps also among the top ten, although tastes are free. no one would say that Harry Maguire it is number one in both rankings. Only in the most expensive, which is not always a merit to brag about. Especially when the performance value is very far from the price.
This is what happens with the English international, incorporated by the Manchester United to rise from vulgarity and does not win titles and did not even qualify for the Champions League. United try to correct the missed shot with the recent signing of Lisandro Martínez. Paying, of course, the barbarity paid by the rich Premier clubs.
A kilo of defense is expensive in football, approaching that of a scoring centre-forward, a trend in keeping with the axiom that a future champion team needs maximum quality in both areas, their own and that of others. The examples confirm the theory. Barça aspires to this, which in addition to Kounde has signed Andreas Christensen. A bargain, not a trinket. It was free.
A central “that breaks lines”
The evolution of football dictates a new requirement for the center-back. He no longer has to intimidate the striker and remove the danger from the area with any method, as expeditious as possible to the delight of a section of the stands, but rather he is asked to give “the pass that breaks lines”, the phrase of modernity. That is, to be able to deliver the ball as perpendicular and as far as possible with precision.
The list of the ten most expensive
1. Harry Maguire
87 million. 2019. From Leicester to Manchester United.
2. Mattijs de Ligt
85.5 million. 2019. From Ajax to Juventus.
3. Virgil van Dijk
84.6 million. 2018. From Southampton to Liverpool.
4. Lucas Hernandez
80 million. 2019. From Atlético Madrid to Bayern Munich.
5. Rúben Dias
68 million. 2020. From Benfica to Manchester City.
6. Matthijs de Ligt
67 million. 2022. From Juventus to Bayern Munich.
7. Aymeric Laporte
65 million. 2018. From Athletic Bilbao to Manchester City.
8. Lisandro Martinez
57.3 million. 2022. From Ajax to Manchester United.
9. John Stones
55.6 million. 2016. From Everton to Manchester City.
10. Jules Kounde
50 million (+ 5 variables). 2022. From Seville to Barcelona.
A facet in which Koeman stood out and that Pep Guardiola, disciple of Johan Cruyff and Koeman’s partner, has become an obsession according to the drive that Manchester City has shown in buying central defenders. Guardiola signed Dimitri Chygrinsky to raise the offensive level of Barça’s defense and delayed Toure Yayá and Javier Mascherano to guarantee the start from behind. In England, he has acquired Rúben Dias, Laporte, Stones, Nathan Aké and Mangala and Otamendi that are no longer.
Kounde enters the select list of the ten most expensive center-backs, chaired by Maguire. Variables put you ahead of Eder Militao (50 million Madrid paid to Benfica) and Raphäel Varane, sold for the same price by Madrid to United in 2019.