Barcelona are reportedly considering the possibility of freezing Ousmane Dembele out of the squad if he does not renew his contract. According to Marca, the Spanish giants are willing to do the same thing they did with Ilaix in 2020.
Dembele only has one year remaining on his current deal, which expires in June 2022. He has been hesitant to sign a new deal with the club so far. However, Barcelona are keen to tie the player down until 2025. They are not rushing to get Dembele to sign yet, since they have time to reach an agreement.
Ronald Koeman was asked about Dembele’s future in today’s press conference prior to Barcelona’s game against Rayo Vallecano. Here is what he had to say:
“The most important thing is that we want him to stay,” said Koeman during Tuesday’s pre-match press conference.
🚨[ @MatteMoretto🥇] | At the moment, Ousmane Dembélé's agent doesn't have a deadline to respond, but FC Barcelona will push for the renewal, as the club wants to close the players renewal in November. Key weeks ahead. #FCBlive pic.twitter.com/d5yiTQt1FH
— BarçaTimes (@BarcaTimes) October 26, 2021
“He is key and has quality. The goal is for him to renew.
“Another thing is if he doesn’t want to renew. We have to talk as a club about the best way to deal with it.
“We haven’t yet talked about what our strategy will be if he doesn’t renew.”
Dembele is one of Barcelona’s most expensive signings of all time. The winger arrived from Borussia Dortmund in a transfer worth €135 million. His tenure at Camp Nou has been inflicted with injuries, and the player is currently on the treatment table as well. He is still 24, and Barcelona are willing to gamble on him being able to stay fit in the upcoming years.
