"Makes no sense for him or the club" - Barcelona president Joan Laporta believes Ousmane Dembele 'has an agreement in place with another club'
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has insisted Ousmane Dembele already has an agreement with another club. He has claimed it is “really difficult” to understand the winger’s position.
Following Xavi’s appointment, the Blaugrana pushed hard to extend Dembele’s contract with the club. The player did not shoot down their request, per se, but demanded a significant bump in wages.
Considering his injury history, Barcelona did not want to take the gamble and asked the player to either reconsider or leave the club in January.
#FCB
Man Utd not even interested
Ousmane Dembélé stays at Barça - he’s never been really close to sign with any club this January. 🚫🔵🔴 #FCB
▪️ Man Utd not even interested
▪️ Chelsea never opened talks
▪️ Tottenham never been close
▪️ No interest in Arsenal swap
▪️ No clubs agreement with PSG
Ousmane stays. https://t.co/NOsSp4brJ6
Current Barcelona boss Xavi even allegedly threatened to leave Dembele out of his squad if he did not comply. The player, however, did not budge and refused to leave the club during the winter transfer window.
He is unlikely to feature under Xavi for the remainder of the season, which would practically diminish his chances of playing in the World Cup.
His suicidal decision may seem cryptic to many, but president Joan Laporta believes the ex-Borussia Dortmund man has a plan in place. Calling Dembele’s state of mind “really difficult” to understand, Laporta told Fabrizio Romano:
“We think Ousmane Dembélé has an agreement in place with another club. He didn’t want to leave the club in January. It’s really difficult to understand his position, makes no sense for him and for the club.”
The 24-year-old winger has played 11 games for Barcelona this season, scoring once.
Barcelona sign former Arsenal skipper Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for free
On deadline day, Xavi’s side signed Arsenal outcast Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on a free transfer. Despite still having 18 months left on their contract with the striker, the Gunners allowed him to move to Camp Nou for free.
The Gabon international, who used to make £350,000-per-week at the Emirates, has reportedly decided to take a massive pay cut to finalize the deal. At Camp Nou, he could earn as little as €5000-per-week until the end of the season.
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang joins Barcelona, done deal and here we go. Contract agreed and now set to be signed by Aubameyang in Barcelona headquarters. Medical successfully completed. 🔵🔴 #FCB
Arsenal will save his huge salary as they wanted. Deal in place. #AFC #DeadlineDay https://t.co/IZEDCj2Zky
His contract is likely to improve dramatically at the end of the 2021-22 campaign, especially if he comes good for the Blaugrana. Arsenal, on the other hand, are set to save a little over £25 million in wages over the next 18 months after shipping the 32-year-old off to Catalonia.