Should Barcelona keep or sell Ousmane Dembele this summer?

Emmet Gates

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:45 CDT
• 3 min read

Manchester United transfer target Ousmane Dembele, linked with a move to Old Trafford last summer, wants to remain at Barcelona.

The Premier League side had been heavily linked with a move for the French winger during the last transfer window, as an alternative in case the deal for Jadon Sancho fell through.

They did indeed turn their attention to Dembele once they realised Borussia Dortmund wouldn’t lower their valuation for the English winger.

However a deal couldn’t be agreed between the United and Barcelona, and Dembele ultimately stayed at the Camp Nou.

Spanish outlet Sport are now reporting that Dembele would like to extend his stay with the club, granted the right terms and conditions are met.

Yet with the club in severe financial difficulty, is the inconsistent Frenchman worth keeping at the club, or should they sell him this summer in order to avoid losing him for nothing in 18 months’ time?

Dembele’s performances for Barcelona

To say Dembele has been a costly failure at Barcelona would be a huge understatement.

Now in his fourth season in La Liga, such has been Dembele’s misfortune with injuries that he’s yet to register 100 appearances in the Blaugrana shirt, in all competitions.

As we can see from the table above, Dembele hasn’t posted superlative numbers since his arrival from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2017.

Furthermore, Dembele’s body hasn’t adapted to Spanish football, with the winger accumulating an astonishing 10 different injuries since joining.

Despite starting 61 times for Barca, there aren’t many standout performances from Dembele, and it seems like the club have lost patience with his lack of consistency.

Barcelona tried to offload him last summer. But off the field at least, Dembele has acclimatised to life in the city, and reportedly wasn’t sold on a move to England, nor to Juventus, who were also interested in his services.

Dembele’s reputation has plummeted over the course of the last several years, and has now become synonymous for injuries rather than the abundance of talent he possesses.

Given Barca’s financial strife at present, and with money at a premium, it makes little sense for the club to tie Dembele down to another long-term deal, not when he’s producing little consistency on the field.

This season has been his most productive since 2018/19. He’s played 21 times, scored six goals, and provided three assists in a struggling team.

Yet given the wages Dembele would surely demand for any contract renewal, and the club’s perilous financial state, the smart move would be to let him go at the end of the current campaign.