Barcelona misfit moving closer to a Chelsea summer switch | OneFootball

Ousmane Dembele has been quite a problematic figure in Barcelona in the past few months. The Frenchman has refused endless offers for a renewal from the Blaugrana. As such, Sporting Director Mateu Alemany and Xavi Hernandez have decided that it would be best to part ways with him.

According to a report relayed by La Porteria, Dembele is very close to signing for Chelsea. The English club have been interested in him for a while, and as per Alfredo Martinez, they are already have several agreements in place.

Dembele joined Barcelona in the summer of 2017 from Borussia Dortmund as the most expensive acquisition the garnet and blue made, with his enormous transfer fee of €130 million. Since joining the club, he has played 129 games, scoring 31 goals and providing a further 24 assists.

Thomas Tuchel, the winger’s former manager, has recently spoken about him, addressing the rumours.

“He’s a very good player, and I am very fortunate to have trained him in my time at Dortmund. It was only one year, it should have been longer, but I needed to leave, and he decided to leave,” he said.

The Blues have been interested in Dembele for several months now. Bar their two wing-backs in Reece James and Ben Chilwell, they have few players that can play out wide. This is where the Frenchman could prove helpful.

Dembele wants to leave because the club could not satisfy his salary demands. He has reportedly asked Barcelona for a €40 million salary, one which the club is far from capable of paying. Due to this, the Blaugrana have slapped on a €4 million asking price on the World Cup winner.

Chelsea are not the only ones interested in signing him. Manchester United are also in the hunt for Dembele, as the Barça number 7 seeks a Premier League club into next season.

The relationship between Barcelona and the winger has hit rock bottom. The hope at the club is that they can rid themselves of him this winter. If that will not be possible, then at the end of his contract on June 30th, he will part ways permanently with Barça.