Chelsea have rejected the chance to send Callum Hudson-Odoi out on loan, rebuffing Borussia Dortmund's attempts to sign the young winger.
The 20-year-old has struggled for minutes under Thomas Tuchel ever since his push in the early weeks of the boss' reign and was an unused substitute in each of Chelsea's three Premier League games so far this year.
Dortmund made a late push to bring Hudson-Odoi in on loan for the remainder of the season, but as first revealed by Sky Germany's Max Bielefeld, the deal is now off the table.
Chelsea have rebuffed all offers for Hudson-Odoi and intend to keep him around Thomas Tuchel's first-team squad, where he will offer competition for a number of places all across the pitch.
As well as being a threat in attack, Hudson-Odoi has been an option for Tuchel at wing-back. On the right side, he has played second-fiddle to Reece James, and it had been suggested that the only way Hudson-Odoi could leave would be if someone else arrived to cover at right-back.
The Blues have been targeting Sevilla's Jules Kounde, a centre-back who is comfortable on the right, but the Spanish side have recently confirmed that the two teams are nowhere near agreeing a deal.
"Jules Kounde has chances to leave the club if some club will pay the release clause," sporting director Monchi told a press conference. "The only written, formal offer from Chelsea came last Wednesday, around 5pm. We weren't satisfied with the offer, and it was linked to Chelsea selling a player. It was a decent fee but it didn't meet our criteria.
"We haven't spoken with Chelsea since Friday night. We all decided that it was best Jules didn't travel to Elche. It's normal for players to be affected by news of any kind. Last year he had the interest from City and now Chelsea this year.
“If there isn't an offer which we feel we can reinvest well, then it won't be accepted. Kounde knows that and he’s a fantastic professional. We had a deadline on August 20 but we received the bid on August 25… and we turned it down."
Source : 90min