Barcelona were left frustrated with Ousmane Dembele’s situation, after the winger held off on a move to Manchester United towards the end of the window.
As reported by Sport on Saturday, his stance did soften over a switch to Old Trafford, however, at that point the window was closing and there wasn’t time available to complete a move. There was also the issue of a renewal had Dembele moved on loan.
That the transfer failed, with Sport saying it was ‘very close’ to happening at one point, meant Ronald Koeman couldn’t bring in Memphis Depay from Lyon, something which is clearly an annoyance for the manager.
Now eyes turn to January, when it’s hoped a ‘solution’ can be found. At that time, Dembele will have a year and a half left on his Barcelona contract and Sport believe he’d be available for a little over €50m.
Manchester United would therefore have another chance, yet given their deadline day recruitment, and that Dembele was hesitant to join at first, there’s a good chance the Premier League club have ditched the idea.
That would leave Barca having to look for a new destination. Sport don’t mention it, but the worry Dembele is working behind the scenes to build a low-cost transfer in summer 2021, or even free in 2022, will surely be a growing concern for the Catalan club.
