(Football news) Barcelona have signed a new contract with Ousmane Dembele till 30th June 2024 after his previous contract expired this summer. The player joined Barcelona from German club Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth £96.8m, potentially rising to £135.5m. Dembele has had a largely underwhelming spell at the Catalan giants with 32 goals and 34 assists in 150 games and has suffered from a number of short/long term injuries.
The relationship between Barcelona and Dembele has been a fractured one as the club had asked the player to leave in January 2022 and threatened to keep him in the stands for the remainder of the season if he refused to leave. Meanwhile, coach Xavi Hernandez was always keen to see Dembele remain at the club and re-introduced him to the squad in February, much to the disapproval of the Barcelona hierarchy.
His re-introduction was not welcomed by many fans who jeered him from the stands but Dembele was an instrumental figure in Barcelona’s season, providing 13 assists and scoring 2 goals in his 32 appearances last season. Paris Saint-Germain were amongst the clubs linked with the French player but reports suggested that his preference was to remain at Barcelona if a suitable contract was offered, despite the club’s financial woes.
Speaking at his contract renewal, Dembele said “Today is a very happy day. I've had difficult years because of injuries but this is another time. My first option was to stay. It [negotiations] has been long but we are all happy and I can't wait for the season to start to help. The aim is to win titles, the dream is the Champions League and I'm going to give my all to win this title. I'm going to work hard and I hope it's a very good year for me and for Barca."
Barca president Joan Laporta added: "Ousmane has a special talent, he is a different player. [Barca coach] Xavi wants him and so does the club, it's an emotional day. I have an admiration for Ousmane as a player and as a person. He's always wanted to stay and he has made an effort to adapt to the new wage structure at Barca."
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