Jules Kounde has been a very influential player for FC Barcelona ever since his arrival at the Catalan club two years ago. The Frenchman has been a mainstay in the Blaugrana defensive line since his arrival, even though there has been some debate about his position in the backline.
Previously, the defender clearly played his best football when positioned at the center of the defense. However, the team’s weakness on the flanks forced Xavi to play him as a right-back. This issue also generated some controversy at the club last year.
Currently, he is playing as a right-back, both for Barcelona and the French national team, with which he is training during this international break.
As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the €45m-rated Frenchman, spoke to the media and talked about his adaptation to the right-back position:
“I think there was also some misunderstanding from people outside about what the coach was asking of me and the player I was. I’m not a natural right-back. Sometimes we can put up barriers for ourselves.”
“It’s no secret; it’s a position that took me time to get used to, but I always had confidence that with hard work, I would manage. It wasn’t a natural role for me, and even though I worked a lot, it was something that would take time.”
With these comments, it is clear that Kounde is now getting more comfortable playing at the right flank. He has already shown his defensive ability for several years now, and he has also contributed offensively well while playing as a right-back. He was one of the scorers for Barcelona in the game against Real Valladolid.
Thus, Barcelona may have found a long-term solution for the right-back position, which was one of their most problematic areas for the last few years. Hopefully, Kounde will continue to shine at this position in the years to come and help keep opposition attackers at bay while also contributing to the offensive side of the game.
