Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembélé has shelved the offer from Newcastle United, making it clear he is not interested in the move.
That’s according to Sport, who say the Frenchman is ‘not receptive’ because the club aren’t at a high enough level on a sporting basis, ‘no matter how much money’ the Magpies have.
They explain that Barcelona are continuing to work on getting Dembélé to sign a new deal at the Camp Nou, with his current contract expiring in the summer.
Xavi wants him at the club and considers him a ‘key player’ for his project, but at the moment, the conditions they’ve offered do not satisfy the player’s agent, Moussa Sissoko.
He has therefore started to listen to offers from elsewhere, and Newcastle are one of the club ‘most interested’ in signing Dembélé.
That’s something that has been widely reported over the last month or so, and even today, we had reports from Spain that the Magpies were in ‘pole position’ for his signature and that Newcastle are willing to pay handsomely to get him.
Sport pick up on that and again say the Magpies have offered a €15m a year contract and €15m in signing on fees, but Dembélé has ‘not been receptive’ to the offer.
The reality is that he wants an ‘interesting sporting project’, and despite their vast wealth, that is something Newcastle cannot offer him. They’re currently in a relegation battle, and the squad is ‘far from being comparable’ to that of the top sides in England and around Europe.
That leaves Barcelona, who are ‘fully aware’ of Newcastle’s offer, as the ‘best positioned’ to secure Dembélé’s signature.
They’re working hard not to burn their bridges with the Magpies, who they are ‘keeping open lines’ with as they continue their attempt to get rid of players like Clement Lenglet in January.
