Since joining Barcelona from Sevilla for €50 million in 2021, Jules Koundé has moved to the right-back position and this season he has excelled in this position, finally showing that he is one of the best in this position at just 25 years old. In this article, we will be investigating Jules Koundé and how he has performed so far this season.

Name: Jules Koundé

Position: Right Back/Center Back

Country: France

Age: 25

Height: 180cm

Preferred Foot: Right

Koundé began his career in Girondins de Bordeaux and spent two seasons in the first team before joining Sevilla for €25 million. He spent three years in Andalusia, winning a Europa League and then joined Barcelona for €50 million where he has remained the past two seasons.

Crossing

For full backs, being able to go up the field and join the attack is an important aspect of their game, and their ability to put in dangerous crosses is an aspect that is not overlooked by coaches.

Even though, Koundé is originally a center-back we can see that he is placed among the most offensive right-backs when it comes to crosses, being above average both in those attempted and those completed. This is very surprising and shows that he is fully acclimatized to his new position where he is now comfortable joining the attack, with similar numbers to those of Marcos Llorente.

In the video footage, we can see that tactically he takes up the position on the wing allowing Lamine Yamal to come inside against Getafe as they are a team that didn’t pose an offensive threat. Nonetheless, against Villarreal we can see that Koundé is often seen in a back three with the other two center backs, offering security if the ball is lost in positional play, and he has learned when to storm the wing to offer 2v1 opportunities against the opposition full-back. In addition, he knows when to give Lamine Yamal freedom for him to operate in 1v1 situations.

Forward Passes

Full-backs are usually players that are counted upon to progress the play on the wing, meaning that forward passes are important for this position.

In this image, we can observe that Koundé is a player with an eye for a pass with close to 20 forward passes per 90 and a high precision. This shows his ability on the ball in possession which suits Barcelona’s playing style to perfection as they want to have the ball for large periods of matches. Furthermore, we can see that his values are similar to Alejandro Francés who plays for Girona and has a similar role to Koundé at Barcelona.

Progressive Passing

This passing metric gives us more depth into the danger of each player’s passing rather than just passing the ball forward 5m. This is because this metric only includes more specific passes such as a pass 10m closer to the opposition goal if the pass comes from the opposition side of the pitch.

With this image, we can identify that Koundé has the ability to play dangerous passes with close to 10 progressive passes per 90 and a very high precision. This is essential for a team like Barcelona who count on giving the ball to the most differential players in advantageous situations to generate opportunities.

Defensive Duels

Dominating defensive duels is key for any defender as their principal role is to defend their goal and not concede.

This image tells us that Koundé is not a player who participates in many defensive duels though he is very close to the average. Nonetheless, his success rate is above average, however, considering he plays for Barcelona and he is considered one of the best, his win rate is disappointing. It is lower than players such as Luis Pérez of Valladolid or Dimitri Foulquier of Valencia. 

Koundé is a great defender overall in both defensive and aerial duels and is very dominant in these actions. In addition, his 1vs1 defending is exceptional and is a player who is very hard to come by for the opposition winger as he is agile, quick, and strong.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Jules Koundé is an exceptional player who at just 25 years old has shown that he is one of the best players in his position, with great tactical intelligence of when to go up the field and when to stay further back. In addition, his crossing abilities are great considering he usually was a center-back and his involvement in attack has improved considerably. Furthermore, he is comfortable on the ball and is able to progress the ball from further deep, as well as being excellent in defense, both in duels and in 1vs1 defending.

By: Juan Fernandez Valencia / @ScotLaLiga

Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Fran Santiago – Getty Images