Ousmane Dembélé set to leave Barcelona, Chelsea in contact — reports

Ousmane Dembélé could be leaving Barcelona this season, as per the latest reports from Gerard Romero, Goal, Diario Sport, Mundo Deportivo and RMC Sport, after rejecting their latest contract extension offer. He was reportedly close to agreeing to it just last week, even going against his representatives’ advice, but that’s apparently no longer the case.

The latest meeting between with the club was not productive, with Barcelona supposedly wanting him to take a wage cut and Dembélé not satisfied with that offer.

Barca are still hopeful that a deal can be salvaged, and will hold new talks, but unless they meet Dembélé’s demands, it’s unlikely that he would sign. And with his contract expiring at the end of the season, the team could look to find a transfer in January, rather than lose him for free in the summer.

According to Sky Sport Italia, Sport Italia and Foot Mercato, Bayern Munich, Manchester United, PSG, Arsenal, Newcastle United as well as Chelsea have already signal some intent to sign Dembélé, with Newcastle supposedly offering the highest wages.

Meanwhile, in potentially related developments, Gerard Romero also reports that Barcelona have held yet more talks with Hakim Ziyech’s entourage. Swap deals don’t usually happen, but perhaps we can use this situation to our advantage (provided we want someone like Dembélé in the first place to bolster our attack)?