If Jules Koundé stands out for something, it is his marvelous physique. Already established as a winger, the Frenchman runs down the wing tirelessly in Barça games, a fixture in the lineup. He reaches the baseline and squeezes himself to cover his back in defense. In 2024 he has added kilometers without rest until he has become the player with the most minutes played this year.
The French winger is the footballer who has been on the field the longest, between games played with his team and with his selection, according to a report from the International Center for Sports Studies (CIES) that reflects the data up to 15 December, that is, until the final whistle of the entire match that Koundé played on Sunday against Leganés.
The second on the list is the Colombian Jhon Arias and the third is the Madrid player Federico Valverde
Koundé, under the orders of Xavi Hernández last year and Hansi Flick since his signing for the Catalans in the summer, and with Didier Deschamps in the French national team, has played 69 games with a total of 5,872 minutes, almost 300 more than the next from the list.
He played 77.5% of his minutes with the Blaugrana club, divided between the domestic competition (62.2%) and the Champions League (15.3%), while he played the remaining 22.5 with the French team. %. And Koundé still has to play this year in the momentous match next Saturday against Atlético de Madrid, in which, barring a surprise, he will play all 90 minutes.
Koundé against the ball in the match against Leganés.
The Frenchman has also performed at a high level in most of the games this season. Koundé was an indisputable piece for Xavi Hernández and this season he is also being one with Flick on the bench, without opposition on the right side.
Behind Koundé appears on the list Jhon Arias, from the Brazilian Fluminense, with whom he played in seven competitions in addition to playing all the games in the last Copa América with Colombia. In third position is Federico Valverde, who this year has played 66 games in the absence of playing in the Intercontinental final this Wednesday against Pachuca.
The list of the ten footballers with the most minutes of the year are the following:
.1. Jules Koundé (Barcelona) 5,872 minutes
.2. Jhon Arias (Fluminense) 5,599 minutes
.3. Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) 5,573 minutes
.4. Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool) 5,523 minutes
.5. Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica) 5,449 minutes
.6. Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen) 5,447 minutes
.7. David Hancko (Feyenoord) 5,377 minutes
.8. Félix Torres (Corinthians) 5,369 minutes
.9. Joe Rondon (Leeds United) 5,276 minutes
.10. William Saliba (Arsenal) 5,264 minutes.
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