Ousmane Dembele will not be leaving Barcelona this summer despite speculation that Liverpool have made a loan-to-buy bid for the £97 million World Cup winner, agent Moussa Sissoko has told L’Equipe Live in quotes translated by Marca.
Even the Premier League leaders are operating with their purse strings tightly drawn at the moment.
Liverpool might have more money that most but, with the high-profile transfers likely to be few and far between this summer, those much-discussed deals for Timo Werner and Kai Havertz will probably have to wait.
And, according to Gianluca di Marzio, the Reds have been getting creative as they look to sign a top-class forward without being forced to break the bank.
Liverpool have apparently approached Dembele to ask about whether an injury-hit Barca benchwarmer would be interested in moving to Anfield on an initial loan deal.
Dembele has apparently turned down an opportunity most footballers would grasp with both hands, however. And, with his agent looking to douse the flames, the smart money is on another season at the Camp Nou for the former Borussia Dortmund talisman.
“I don’t expect Dembele to leave Barcelona this summer,” Sissoko explains.
As fans of Dortmund and Rennes will tell you, this is a player with remarkable ability, boasting explosive speed, dead-eyed finishing and the ability to scythe a defence apart with either feet.
But his time at Barcelona has been nothing short of a disaster so far. In addition to continued concerns over his attitude, Dembele has missed a remarkable 86 games through injury since the start of the 2017/18 season.
During the current campaign, he has made just five La Liga appearances.
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