Barcelona meet with Ousmane Dembele’s agent as they look to improve relations ahead of contract talks with in-form winger
Ousmane Dembele was frozen out at Barcelona after refusing to agree new dealBut the French winger now appears to have reignited his spark at the Nou CampThe 24-year-old forward is also closer to the Catalan club’s chiefs than everHis agent is no closer to accepting the terms offered at the end of last year
Barcelona met with Ousmane Dembele’s agent in Morocco this week in a bid to thaw relations ahead of contract negotiations.
Barca director Mateu Alemany and Moussa Sissoko, Dembele’s representative, spoke on Monday in Marrakesh. The meeting did not centre on financial figures, the purpose was more to build a platform that would allow negotiations to re-start, reduce past tensions and create a better atmosphere between the two parties.
The last contact had been in January after which Alemany declared Dembele would have to leave the club and would not play for them again after rejecting Barca’s contract offer.
Barcelona met with Ousmane Dembele’s agent in Morocco this week to thaw relations
The France international, a free agent this summer, saw a subsequent move to Paris St Germain fall through and was ostracised by Barca.
However, his attitude and work ethic impressed coaches and he earned the respect of Barcelona boss Xavi who convinced the board that they could still count on the 24-year-old.
Xavi’s public support for Dembele’s professionalism plus the winger’s improved performances got fans back on side and that led to calls for contract negotiations to be re-opened.
The general feeling after Monday’s talks in Marrakesh was a positive one.
Dembele has turned his Barcelona career around under the management of Xavi
Sportsmail understands…