Winger Ousmane Dembele has asked his agent to give Barcelona priority ahead of the conclusive meeting between the two, scheduled for the next week once the league is officially over.
Spanish news outlet SPORT believes that the player’s agent, as well as the Barcelona management, will try to reach a definitive agreement to extend his current deal that expires at the end of the campaign.
It’s not only Barcelona but even the player is willing to make the effort, but the question still remains; how far will the two go?
While the player has ordered his representatives to put Barcelona above everyone, Xavi has done the same with his sporting director Mateu Alemany.
The Barcelona-Dembele spectacle has been taking forever to reach the desired settlement. The anecdote reached its boiling point in January when the management asked the Frenchman to leave or come under the risk of not playing for the team ever again.
Xavi’s efforts, however, turned the tide on its head, and the winger has now become one of the most important players in the manager’s scheme of things.
Club president Joan Laporta recently revealed that the player has had a new offer on the table for some time. But since the figures are not matching his expectations, the negotiation has continued to stall.
Since their last meeting, Barcelona have been following up with his representatives quite regularly, but the parties still remain way off of the valuation.
Other suitors waiting to pounce
Dembele not accepting the current offer is certainly not to only issue Barcelona are facing. Since he is about to become a free agent, several suitors are looking to pounce on the given opportunity, with one of them being Chelsea.
SPORT says the Premier League team has already made contacts with Dembele’s agent while the likes of Bayern Munich and Paris-Saint Germain are in line too.
At Bayern, since Serge Gnabry is stalling his renewal, Bayern are exploring Dembele as a potential replacement. And thanks to his exploits in Bundesliga during his time with Borussia Dortmund, they believe it will take him no time to adjust.
At the same time, Barça are eyeing Gnabry as a replacement for Dembele.
As far as PSG are concerned, Angel Di Maria’s departure will leave a significant void, and they will, in fact, need someone to take over the mantle. According to SPORT, they believe Dembele could be the one.
As of today, while the ball is in Barcelona’s court, thanks to the player’s wish to continue, there are other catalysts the Blaugranas need to consider before offering him a new deal ahead of the next season.
