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Ousmane Dembele’s future at Barcelona has made headlines all season with the French forward out of contract at the end of the 2021-22 campaign and able to walk away from the Camp Nou as a free agent.
Journalist Gerard Romero is now reporting that Dembele will do exactly that after contract negotiations with the Catalan giants broke down. As it stands, Dembele will not extend his career at Barcelona and is able to talk to other clubs from 1 January 2022.
Barca and Dembele’s agent met to discuss his extension once again on Wednesday, December 29. The 24-year-old’s representative, Moussa Sissoko, asked for a gross annual salary of €40m and a signing bonus of €40m, according to Santi Aouna at Foot Mercato.
Coach Xavi has previously made it clear he wants Dembele to stay and become a key part of his new team at Barcelona, as reported by ESPN.
“That’s a priority,” he said about Dembele’s contract situation in November 2021. “Coached well, he can be one of best in the world in his position. He has all the qualities to be a superstar.”
President Joan Laporta has also said he wants Dembele to remain at Barcelona and even claimed he thinks the forward is better than Paris Saint-Germain’s prolific striker Kylian Mbappe.
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Barcelona Willing To Listen To Dembele Offers?
Romero adds that Barcelona are now willing to listen to offers for Dembele starting from €50 million in January. The Catalans signed the forward from Borussia Dortmund in summer 2017 for a reported fee of €105 million, plus a potential €42m in add-ons.
The news comes after it had appeared Dembele was set to stay. Members of Dembele’s “camp” had claimed the forward had decided to continue his career at the Camp Nou. Dembele had also appeared to hint at a Barcelona stay with a post on Instagram on Boxing Day.
However, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has backed up Romero’s report and says there is now a “real danger” that Dembele will not renew at Barcelona because the club simply cannot afford the financial package he wants.
Dembele Tests Positive For Covid-19
Meanwhile, Dembele is one of seven Barcelona players to have tested positive for Covid-19 after returning to first-team training following a short break over the festive period.
The club announced that Dembele, Samuel Umtiti, and Gavi all returned positive tests but are in good health. The trio are all now isolating and will miss Barcelona’s first game of 2022 against Real Mallorca on Sunday, January 2.
Clement Lenglet, Jordi Alba, Dani Alves, and Alejandro Balde have also tested positive and will miss the game, leaving coach Xavi desperately short of options for the match at Son Moix.
Captain Sergio Busquets is also out because of suspension, while Barca have a lengthy injury list that currently includes Ansu Fati, Pedri, Sergi Roberto, Sergino Dest, Martin Braithwaite, Memphis Depay, and new signing Ferran Torres.
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