5 teams Ousmane Dembele could join if he leaves Barcelona in January
It appears as though Ousmane Dembele's immensely frustrating spell at Barcelona is finally coming to an end. In a fiery statement issued on Thursday, the club's director of football, Mateu Almany, revealed that the French winger is likely to be sold before the end of January.
"We have made different offers and have tried to find a way for him [Dembele] to continue with us. These offers have been systematically rejected by his agents. It seems obvious to us that he does not want to continue at Barcelona and is not committed to our future project. He and his agent have been told that he must leave immediately and we expect a transfer before January 31," said Alemany.
Mateu Alemany: "We understand Dembélé's decision is to not continue (at Barça) and we've communicated our decision (to exclude him). We want players that are committed to the club and we have told him he has to leave the club as soon as possible."
❗Mateu Alemany: "We understand Dembélé's decision is to not continue (at Barça) and we've communicated our decision (to exclude him). We want players that are committed to the club and we have told him he has to leave the club as soon as possible." https://t.co/A1yrWBholm
Ousmane Dembele joined Blaugrana from Borussia Dortmund in 2017 for a staggering £126million fee. In what will go down as one of the worst transfers in modern football, he has endured an injury-prone spell with the Catalan club, which has been punctuated by off-field controversies.
The Frenchman has made 129 appearances in which he has scored 31 goals and provided 23 assists. Dembele has failed to register double-digit goals or assists in the league since joining the Spanish giants and has incredibly missed over 100 games due to various injuries.
Could Ousmane Dembele make his way to the Premier League this month?
According to Fabrizio Romano, the winger already has offers from two Premier League clubs regarding a summer transfer. It is important to note that Dembele is out of contract at the end of the ongoing season. As a result, Barcelona will welcome a cut-price deal in the winter window rather than risk losing him for free six months later.
More: instagram.com/p/CYFR7XkoQFB/…Ousmane Dembélé has been approached by two Premier League clubs to sign as free agent, offering big salary. ❗️ #FCB
His plan was to stay, but he won’t sign a new deal if Barça don't offer him salary he wants - situation now ‘really complicated’.
📲 More: instagram.com/p/CYFR7XkoQFB/…
The French international's wage demands could also throw a spanner in the works. He currently takes home £210,000-per-week and was reportedly looking for a salary hike during his recent negotiations with Blaugrana.
Here are five clubs that could benefit the talented but inconsistent French star in the next couple of weeks.
#5 Newcastle United
The Magpies are among the few clubs who can match Dembele's wage demands and Barcelona's asking price without a second thought. Following the recent takeover by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, Newcastle have already spent £37million to bring Chris Wood and Kieran Trippier to St. James' Park.
🤝 #NUFCNewcastle will pay full release clause to Burnley for Chris Wood. Fee around £20m, personal terms already agreed. Deal to be announced this week. ⚪️🤝 #NUFC
Newcastle could also sign another striker this winter if they find a good opportunity/talent.
The Barcelona star, though, will not be thrilled at the prospect of leaving one of the world's biggest clubs to join a relegation battle. With one win in 20 league games, Newcastle are currently 19th in the table and survival is looking increasingly out of their reach with each passing week.
The last thing the Magpies need is another injury-prone forward. Similarly, the idea of spending his prime years playing in the EFL Championship next season is probably a dealbreaker for the 24-year-old winger. All things considered, this is a deal that is unlikely to go through.
#4 Manchester United
The Red Devils are another side who have the resources to match Ousmane Dembele and Barcelona's demands. Manchester United are set to offload Paul Pogba, Donny van de Beek, Jesse Lingard and perhaps even Edinson Cavani's salaries from their wage bill by the end of the season.
On paper, this signing makes sense. Despite splurging exorbitant amounts into the transfer market, United are somehow still without a traditional right winger. Dembele offers an intriguing solution to one of the longest-standing problems at Old Trafford.
Manchester United doubts over Ousmane Dembele should block any Barcelona transfer efforts #mufc
manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football…
However, there are numerous questions that need answering first and perhaps a January move would come too soon for the club. Is it worth signing the Barcelona forward at the cost of 20-year-old Mason Greenwood's playing time? Will £77million man Jadon Sancho eventually operate on the right? Will Cristiano Ronaldo leave in the summer, allowing Greenwood and Rashford to play through the middle?
The Frenchman has been strongly linked with Manchester United for a couple of years now. But the Red Devils would be better off trying to coax the best out of the misfiring Jadon Sancho before adding yet another forward to the mix.