Reports have suggested that Jules Kounde was upset that Chelsea were targeting other defenders this summer instead of securing his signing.
According to The Athletic, this played into his thinking before he agreed personal terms on a £55m move to Barcelona.
The Blues made it no secret that they were seeking a major overhaul of their defence, following the departure of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen.
With Cesar Azpilicueta also linked with a move away, it was believed that Thomas Tuchel was looking to sign three centre-backs this summer.
This saw them spread their interests around Europe, with talks reportedly reaching an advanced stage for Matthijs de LIgt and Nathan Ake.
This is despite how close they came to signing Kounde 12 months ago, with everyone expecting it to be complete this summer.
The Athletic believe this sent a message to the France international that he was not the top priority for the Blues, leading him to choosing Barcelona over them.
Chelsea upset Kounde this summer
The transfer brings a sense of Déjà vu to Chelsea fans, with the Catalan club also ousting them for the signing of Raphinha, despite the Blues agreeing a fee with Leeds United first.
The club are currently living to regret their decision to not secure Kounde originally, with them also not able to confirm deals for the aforementioned Dutch pair.
In fact, other than the signing of Kalidou Koulibaly, Tuchel is facing somewhat of a defensive crisis with only nine days until their first Premier League fixture of the season.
The club are reportedly targeting deals for Presnel Kimpembe and Wesley Fofana, although they are aware that player loyalty and extortionate price tags are making any deals for current targets extremely difficult.
With that being said, it may be advisable to target one big name this summer and look to bed Levi Colwill into the setup, with his promising future something the Blues don’t want to miss out on.