Chelsea given Jules Kounde transfer 'ultimatum' and are ready to pull out

Chelsea have been given an 'ultimatum' over the signing of Jules Kounde with less than 48 hours to run till the transfer deadline.

The Blues have been chasing the Sevilla star for much of the summer and looked to be closing in on a deal worth £43million.

Kounde was even left out of Sevilla's squad to face Elche on Saturday, suggesting he was on the verge of a transfer.

Reports claimed the 22-year-old had even flown out of Spain to Paris where he was awaiting news of his potential switch to Stamford Bridge.

However, talks now appear to have hit a roadblock as Sevilla are said to have upped their asking price.

Chelsea could pull out of a deal for Jules Kounde after Sevilla upped their asking price ( Image:

NurPhoto/PA Images)

According to Spanish publication AS, negotiations are ongoing between both clubs, but Chelsea are yet to advance their bid beyond £43m.

That falls below the figure Sevilla are now demanding.

Kounde's release clause is set at £68m, but Sevilla are prepared to accept between £51-60m if Chelsea are willing to submit an offer on Monday.

If not, Sevilla are ready to stick to their guns and insist that Kounde's release clause be paid in full, which would almost certainly scupper the deal.

Chelsea turned their attentions to Kounde after failing to land Achraf Hakimi, who eventually signed for Paris Saint-Germain.

But the Premier League club will unlikely be held to ransom for the defender, especially after forking out a club-record £97.5m for Romelu Lukaku already this window.

They have been astute in offloading a number of fringe stars to recoup the money spent on the Belgian striker, and boosted their finances further with the sale of Kurt Zouma to West Ham over the weekend.

It was thought that Zouma's sale would provide the funds necessary to complete a swoop for Kounde, but Sevilla's new demands may prove problematic.

Sevilla are yet to source a replacement themselves yet either - something they will be keen to do before the deadline passes.

The Athletic report that a 'verbal agreement' was already in place between Sevilla and Chelsea over Kounde's sale, before the La Liga outfit asked for more cash.

Chelsea could now turn their back on the deal altogether, with Thomas Tuchel prepared to stick with his current squad.

Meanwhile, Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi could be set to join Borussia Dortmund on a season-long loan deal.

The 20-year-old is yet to make an appearance this season despite being involved in all three of Chelsea's matchday squads in the Premier League.

Dortmund's rivals Bayern Munich have had several offers for Hudson-Odoi rejected in the past, but now it seems they could be beaten to the punch.

Talks are said to be taking place between Dortmund and Chelsea, with Hudson-Odoi thought to be keen on the move to increase his chances of regular first-team football.

Chelsea have also offloaded midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko on a two-year loan deal to AC Milan, with a £15m option to buy clause included.