Tchouameni and Kounde, inseparable until Real Madrid and Barcelona arrived

In 2017, when Aurelien Tchouameni and Jules Kounde became French Under-17 champions with Bordeaux, they never imagined that their careers would cross paths in Spain, with one ending up at Real Madrid and the other at Barcelona.

Their friendship was forged in the French team's youth academy, and they became inseparable, despite the fact that their enormous potential earned one of them a move to Monaco and the other to Sevilla.

As of this season, they will become close enemies.

Long-suffering saviours

For Kounde, his transfer has meant that Bordeaux have received a significant injection of money that will allow them to avoid bankruptcy and disappearance.

They will presenting their accounts to the DNCG, the French football supervisory body, on Tuesday and at least stay in Ligue 2.

For the Real Madrid midfielder, Bordeaux also pocketed another five million euros from the transfer.

Tchouameni's message to Kounde after signing for Barcelona

The two players have been keeping a close eye on the transfer market this summer, especially in terms of what could happen to their friend and national teammate.

Tchouameni didn't hesitate in sending a message to the Barcelona player when he posted a photo of himself in a his new shirt.

"Congratulations, brother. Now it's war between us," wrote the former Monaco player.

Same agent and a clothing brand

Kounde and Tchouameni also share the same agent, Jonathan Kebe, head of the Excellent Sport Nation communication agency, and they also share the same agency that handles their PR.

But there's more: the Madrid player has agreed to model the clothing brand that his national teammate runs with designer Goba Noel, Homies From Paris (HFP).

And he is not the only one, because another Madrid player, Karim Benzema, has also modelled the defender's brand.

Two passionate NBA fans

The two players recently took a trip to watch an NBA game.

They share a passion for American basketball and posed together in Miami during the fifth game of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics.

Kounde is a Cleveland fan and Tchouameni is a Philadelphia 76ers fan.

The same fitness coach

Earlier this summer, Kounde and Tchouameni met up in Los Angeles to get back in shape before returning to training. They did so at Fabrice Gautier's health clinic in Beverly Hills.

Their agent Jonathan Kebe, who started out representing basketball players before setting up his own agency, was the link with the famous physiotherapist and osteopath.

Same path with the French national team

The pair made their international debuts at the same age, 21, and within two months of each other, before winning the Nations League together with France against Spain in the final.

That was enough time for Jules to make it to Euro 2021. With Les Bleus, they are inseparable and now that their beginnings at Bordeaux are long gone, at least they can work together in Clairefontaine.

"I used to ask Jules what the France squad was like. Except for Monaco, the truth is that I was lucky that every time I arrived in a group, he was there. I used to tell him that he was like my test driver," commented the Madrid player in L'Equipe.