Koundé, the hero who didn't want to be a full-back: "I'm a footballer to play games like these."

"I don't want to play right-back." That was how Jules Koundé was blunt in the summer of 2023 in a private conversation with Xavi Hernández . At La Cartuja, when he started to intercept Modric 's pass, stand in the area and shoot, nobody thought about that challenge, not even him, because since then he has adapted to become one of the best right-backs in the world and his name will forever be linked to the 2025 Cup. "I was saving this goal for a final," he confessed with a laugh just after the match.

A key player for Barça, he hasn't missed a game since November 28, 2023. He has 88 minutes as a Barça player and 18 more with France , where Deschamps also plays him right on the goal line. That's why he finished 2024 as the outfield player with the most minutes that calendar year, a figure he could smash in 2025, having already logged 4,581 minutes this season. Flick has only left him on the bench once and substituted him three times. He can only receive a yellow card outside the squad, which would force him to serve a suspension if seen in one of the five upcoming La Liga matches.

Koundé deconstructed himself as a center-back to move to the right after his first season as a Barça player and as a La Liga champion. Barça didn't have players in that position or the financial resources to acquire them. That's why the Frenchman's resistance was short-lived: his undisputed starting position was at full-back, from where, at 26, he has established himself among the world's best and has raised his market value above the 50 million euros that his departure from Sevilla cost.

Flick has also given him a boost. The German's confidence has led him to emerge as an offensive weapon. He has scored four goals, two in La Liga and two in the Copa del Rey, equaling his personal best, which he set as a Sevilla player in the 20/21 season. He also has eight assists , an unusual tally for a full-back except at this regenerated Barça, where Balde has ten from the left wing.

Koundé is the perfect complement to Lamine Yamal . With the advanced defense brought in by the German coach, he can cover his back and also appear to support him in attack. That's what he did in the final. "I saw Modric was going to pass and I anticipated it. I had Lamine, but I thought it was a shot," he happily described from the entrance of La Cartuja. His complicity with the young star is evident on and off the field.

The two of them feed off each other and strengthen their "character" and "confidence," which, for the Frenchman, was key to the comeback. For example, what Lamine said to Araújo in extra time: "It doesn't matter if they concede one or two goals because they can't beat us this year." Perhaps Koundé didn't hear it, but he knows how to hurt Real Madrid. In the Copa del Rey final, he scored the decisive goal in the 116th minute. In the Saudi Super Cup, he assisted Raphinha 's header. "I'm a footballer for experiencing these games. A Clásico is the best match in Europe," he confessed, wearing a champion's medal around his neck.

Model and president

The Frenchman has two years left on his contract with Barça, which is entering a new era and is already a key player for the French national team. But his brilliance extends beyond the playing field, where his passion for taking care of his appearance is reflected only in his hair. Now long and with a ribbon, now braided or tied in two buns. Off the field, he conveys the same personality in his clothing. He never fails to impress, which has led him to become a model for the French brand Jacquemus .

Among his challenges is winning the treble with Barça, the desire for a rogue dressing room of centennials that ends up infecting with his eccentric looks and his dances, but outside he also has his own projects for that Generation Z. He is co-owner with his great friend Tchouaméni , who also scored in the final, of the 360 ​​Nations team of the French Kings League, which they share with Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan, Mbeume and Manu Koné. All without missing a minute on the pitch.