Former Barcelona star Ousmane Dembele looked as if he may finally be on the verge of making things work at Camp Nou last season, and hopes for his performance were the highest they have ever been.
While injury again ruled him out for much of the second half of the season, Dembele was differential for Barcelona while he was on the pitch, and Xavi Hernandez’s backing had him making better decisions than ever before.
To all intent and purposes, Dembele was happy, as he remarked on the 17th of July, just over four weeks ago.
“Barca wants to renew me until 2027 and my agent is talking to them. I’m happy here and I want to continue. We’ll see what happens,” the Frenchman told Marca.
“Barca is now a team with veterans and youngsters. There is a very good atmosphere in the dressing room. We are like a family. I feel very good with my teammates and in the city. I am happy here and I am playing.”
Yet just 28 days later, Paris Saint-Germain would announce his signing, disappointing many Culers, who believed he had turned the corner for Barcelona.
This redemption of course came after he was told to leave two Januarys ago, and ended up staying. Last summer, before he signed his new deal, there was also plenty of speculation linking him with his new club PSG, but Dembele said that was empty speculation.
“I did not see myself anywhere but Barca. We were negotiating, something that is normal in the world of football. Sometimes things went well and sometimes not so well, but in the end an agreement was reached. There was a lot of talk about PSG, perhaps because I’m French, but there was nothing at any time with this club.”
Only the mercurial French winger will be able to explain what changed in those four weeks. Naturally, PSG probably offered him more money, and he has the chance to head back to his native France. Whether those were the only factors or not will inevitably come out in time.
Look at the end of the day both he and his agents made their decisions they are in france now not spain getting paid lots of money which is what they always wanted to begin with it hardly takes a rocket scientist to figure this one out lol and who really cares if there were other factors involved ? they got their move they got their money end off.