Jules Kounde appeared at the press conference prior to the French national team's match against Croatia in the quarterfinals of the Nations League. When asked about the Ballon d'Or, the Frenchman didn't give a candidate, but he did say that he would prefer it to be a Barcelona player, as it would mean that they have come a long way and won titles.
Kounde was given a press conference on the first day of training for the French national team. The French defender discussed the first leg of the Nations League quarter-final against Croatia, but also had time to address other issues.
"The desire is still there. With the French national team, we have a duty to fulfill. We want to win, to take our chances. We take this double-header very seriously. We want to qualify for the Final Four. And win. It's a less showy competition than the European Championship and the World Cup, but we want to win it," he began.
On his position at right back: "It was a position that took me a while to adapt to. I knew it would take time, the two positions had nothing in common. They require very different qualities. It's the result of a lot of work. I feel more comfortable, I enjoy it. I still have a lot of things I need to improve. I'm happy with my progress, I consider myself both a full-back and a centre-back."
Kounde declined to comment on the Ballon d'Or, although he prefers it to go to a Barcelona player: "That's a difficult question. They are all having very, very good seasons. It's difficult to pick a favourite. They are all impressive. They are different players. If a Barcelona player were to win, it would mean that we have gone far in the big competitions...".
Finally, he spoke about his relationship with Lamine Yamal: "We get along very well on and off the pitch. He achieves exceptional things, but he's still a kid, a teenager, he likes to joke around. It's easy to play with a player like him. We have a great complementarity.