Courted by PSG, Ousmane Dembélé could leave FC Barcelona in the coming hours.
Ousmane Dembele in Paris? The world champion is expected to join the capital club on Monday July 31 in order to lift the release clause of 50 million before it increases to 100 million from midnight. But if PSG has every interest in signing the world champion as soon as possible, Ousmane Dembélé also has a financial interest in this transaction. As several media indicate, the former Rennes or Dortmund player negotiated an improbable clause in his contract which would allow him to receive 50% of his release clause, i.e. the astronomical sum of 25 million. As a reminder, the former Rennais is linked to Barça until 2024, with an optional additional season which he has not activated.
According to COPE radio, Xavi organized a meeting this Sunday with Ousmane Dembélé in order to convince him to stay. After the Clasico this weekend with a goal from “Dembouz”, Xavi was cautious about the future of the Frenchman. “He told us he was happy,” said the Barça technician. Before making a very factual contractual point: “We can’t control the market. There are clauses and it’s the player’s decision. I see him happy and it’s up to him to decide. I see it very well adapted. He told us he was happy. He is very different.”
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Short biography of Ousmane Dembele Ousmane Dembélé was born on May 15, 1997 in Vernon, Eure, and grew up in Les Andelys. He was destined very early for a career as a professional footballer. Originally from Senegal, Ousmane Dembélé has a brother and two sisters. While they devote themselves to their studies, the young Ousmane trains and joins the ALM Evreux club from the age of 7. Encouraged by his relatives, Ousmane Dembélé embarks on training to become a professional football player. His family, guided by his mother Fatimata, did not hesitate to move to Brittany to give the future player the chance to pursue his dream. The latter is partly responsible for managing her career in collaboration with her agent, Badou Sambague.
Born in Eure on May 15, 1997, Ousmane Dembélé was destined very early for a career as a professional footballer. In 2004, he joined ALM Evreux and took his first steps in the field. After 5 seasons in the junior course, he joined Evreux FC. He also tried his hand at futsal and wasted no time in getting noticed by recruiters from Stade Rennes, Stade Malherbe in Caen and even Le Havre AC. From 2010 to 2015, he completed his training in Brittany. In 2013 and 2014, he was also selected 8 times for the France team, during which he scored 4 goals. In the French amateur championship 2, the player notably scored 13 goals in 18 games. Ousmane Dembélé’s professional career began in 2015.
He discovered Ligue 1 with Stade Rennes. In 29 games, he scored 12 goals and 5 assists. Ousmane Dembélé won the UNFP player of the month trophy in March 2016 after scoring two goals in a match against Reims. But the few months of collaboration with Rennes are complicated, in particular because of his salary demands. For 15 million euros, his transfer is recorded at the end of the season for Borussia Dortmund, which he joined in the summer of 2016. Only three months after the start of his contract, he becomes a regular player and participates in the Bundesliga . During 50 games played, he scored ten goals. In August 2017, the player was sanctioned by the club for not showing up during training.
In mid-2017, Ousmane Dembélé now plays for FC Barcelona, which sees him as the replacement for Neymar, gone to PSG. His transfer is estimated at more than 105 million euros, making it one of the most expensive transfers in football. Since then, his career has had its ups and downs, notably due to injuries, and he has not yet reached the level one would have imagined, given his potential. Which did not prevent him from being crowned world champion
with the Blues in 2018.
Ousmane Dembélé had a fairly linear career with the France team. Called first among young people (U17, U18, U19 and Espoirs), he had his first selection for the Blues at 19, when he came into play in a friendly match against Italy on September 1. 2016. Very quickly, the French winger will no longer leave the group of Didier Deschamps which makes him one of his base men. He scored his first goal with the Blues in a match against England in June 2017. Logically called up for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Ousmane Dembélé started the first match of the group stage against Australia (2- 1), but the sluggish match of the Blues encourages Didier Deschamps to change his plans. The French winger comes out of the starting XI and will only come into play against Uruguay in the quarter-finals (0-2) during the final phase. Caught up by injuries and his inconstancy, Ousmane Dembélé will spend almost two and a half years away from the France team, between November 2018 and March 2021, when he was recalled by Didier Deschamps with the Blues. Just in time to then be integrated into the French selection to compete in Euro 2021. Facing Hungary, he comes into play, even hits the opposing post before injuring himself at the end of the game. A match that looks like him, unfortunately. Since then, he has played only one match with the France team. It was during the last rally in September, when he returned late in the game against Austria.
When World Cup 2022, Ousmane Dembélé alternates the good and the less good. Have zero goals, he did not bring the madness he brings to FC Barcelona, but the Barça player impressed with his desire and his determination, especially during the defensive phases. Unfortunately, his aggressiveness cost him dearly in the World Cup final when he conceded a penalty on Angel Di Maria, taken by the experience of the Argentinian. He will be replaced a few minutes later and will attend the coronation of Argentina on the bench.
Ousmane Dembélé has become a different player for a few months and he seems to have put his physical problems behind him. His last big injury dates back to Euro 2021 with the Blues, during the match against Hungary. The FC Barcelona winger seems to have finally understood the rhythm of life of a professional player, after years spent injuring himself, which could have been frustrating for him, for his clubs and for the France team. His personal situation is certainly no stranger to this development, since Ousmane Dembélé married in December 2021 and now leads a tidy life. The French international is also in a stable situation in the club, since he recently extended his contract with Barça until 2024. A club where he arrived more than five years ago, in the summer of 2017.