Jorge Sampaoli issues public apology after saying PSG star Ousmane Dembele 'plays like an autistic' in recent interview
Former Argentina manager Jorge Sampaoli has issued a public apology after making a derogatory remark about Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star Ousmane Dembele. Sampaoli's initial comments on the Frenchman came a few days after Les Bleus' 2-1 UEFA Euro 2024 semi-final loss to Spain.
France, champions of Europe in 1984 and 2000, failed to impress this time around in Germany. Although they were solid at the back, they scored just four times during regulation time throughout the competition, with two of them being own goals.
Dembele featured in five games — assisting once in his team's 1-1 group-stage draw against Poland. He was also their Player of the Match in the 0-0 (5-3 on pens) quarter-final win against Portugal.
Sampaoli, however, was seemingly unimpressed with the former Barcelona winger's showing in Germany. He recently told French outlet SoFoot (via @CentreGoals on X):
"Dembele plays like an autistic. He starts the action and finishes it alone. He doesn't have the ability to make a team-mate shine, he only knows how to shine himself."
The 64-year-old Argentine has now publicly apologized for his remarks. He took to his Instagram account and posted a story, a part of which read (via GOAL):
"It was never my intention to refer to autism. I apologize to everyone. I wanted to talk about individuality. More than ever, you need to be careful with the words used."
Sampaoli has managed the likes of Sevilla, Marseille, Chile, and Santos alongside La Albiceleste during his managerial career. He was most recently the manager of Brazilian giants Flamengo for five and a half months before being sacked in September last year.
A brief look at Ousmane Dembele's performance at PSG last season
Ousmane Dembele moved to PSG last summer for a €50 million fee following an injury-laden spell at Barcelona. His first year in Paris was largely impressive, as he finished with a tally of six goals and 14 assists in 42 matches across competitions.
No one had more assists for PSG during that time and Dembele was also the club's fifth top-scorer that season. He notably notched up two goals and an assist in his team's 6-4 aggregate UEFA Champions League quarter-final win against Barca.
The 27-year-old also scored in the 2-1 Coupe de France final win against Lyon and assisted a goal in PSG's 2-0 Trophee des Champions victory over Toulouse. With Kylian Mbappe off to Real Madrid this summer, one can expect Dembele to shoulder more responsibility in PSG's new-look attack.