Barcelona Respond to Ousmane Dembele to Man Utd Rumors

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Barcelona sporting director Ramon Planes had responded to rumors Manchester United want to sign Ousmane Dembele before the transfer window closes on October 5.

Planes was asked about the speculation at a news conference to unveil new signing Sergino Dest on Friday and offered an update on the Frenchman’s future at Barca.

“Firstly, there is no negotiation. He is a player we can count on and as Ronald said, we know his potential and I am convinced that he will have a great year with us.”

Manchester United are keen to bring in Dembele if they fail to land top target Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund, according to Miguel Rico at Mundo Deportivo. Dembele has been unwilling to leave but has reluctantly accepted he could depart.

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What Next For Dembele?

Dembele’s future is attracting plenty of headlines in the final days of the transfer window, and it’s unclear if he will stay at the Camp Nou.

Hugo Delom at L’Equipe reports Manchester United are in contact and Dembele is getting excited about the possibility of a move to Old Trafford.

France and United midfielder Paul Pogba has been in touch with Dembele to try to convince him to make the switch to the Premier League, according to Mundo Deportivo‘s Cristina Cubero.

Dembele has not started either of Barcelona’s two La Liga games so far in 2020-21 and didn’t even make it off the bench in Thursday’s 3-0 win at Celta. Manager Ronald Koeman opted to bring on Pedri and Francisco Trincao instead and explained it was because the duo “add more defensively.”

Certainly if Dembele does stay then he faces a real battle for a place in Koeman’s starting XI with Pedri, Trincao, and Ansu Fati all vying for places in attack along with Lionel Messi, Philippe Coutinho, and Antoine Griezmann.

According to ESPN’s Samuel Marsden, Barcelona would prefer to sell Dembele rather than send him out on loan. Yet Manchester United may be unwilling to invest in a player who has endured an injury-ravaged time at Barcelona since joining from Borussia Dortmund in 2017.

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