5 players Barcelona could have signed instead of Ousmane Dembele

Barcelona are likely to sell Ousmane Dembele within the next fortnight as the player's contract situation remains unresolved. The 24-year-old's current deal expires this summer and he has not put pen to paper on a new deal. The Catalans have reportedly been put off by Dembele's hefty wage demands.

Barcelona don't want to lose Ousmane Dembele on a free transfer

Barcelona have reportedly shifted their focus to recouping whatever little amount they can of that €140 million they paid Borussia Dortmund to sign Dembele in 2017. The Catalans had just offloaded Neymar Jr. for €222 million and had enough money to sign two or three world-class players.

We are all aware of what a poor job Barcelona did with respect to their recruitment in the following years. Dembele did show a lot of promise as a teenager in the 2016-17 season. He scored 10 goals and provided 21 assists in 49 appearances across all competitions for Dortmund that term.

But did he prove to be worth €140 million? Was it worth all the disciplinary problems, injury issues and this unsavory contract standoff? We don't think so.

On that note, let's take a look at five players the Catalans could have signed instead of Ousmane Dembele.

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#5 Leroy Sane

FC Bayern München v VfL Wolfsburg - Bundesliga

Leroy Sane impressed Pep Guardiola immensely with his pace and technical ability in his first season at Manchester City in 2016. With Raheem Sterling being first-choice on the left-wing, Sane was often deployed on the right.

He started just 20 games in the Premier League and three in the Champions League, but amassed a total of 37 appearances across all competitions. Sane scored nine goals and provided eight assists that term.

While those numbers pale in comparison to Dembele's from the same campaign, Sane wouldn't have cost Barcelona a third of what the Frenchman did. He has also gone onto become one of the best left wingers in the world and is currently thriving at Bayern Munich.

#4 Son Heung-min

Tottenham Hotspur v Watford - Premier League

Son Heung-min will probably go down in history as one of the most underrated wingers of his generation. The South Korean international has been phenomenal for Tottenham Hotspur over the past six years. Mauricio Pochettino signed him from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2015 for €30 million.

He took some time to get accustomed to the pace of the Premier League. But by the 2016-17 season, Son was flying. He scored 21 goals and provided nine assists in 47 appearances across all competitions for Spurs that term.

Son was just 25 years old in the summer of 2017 and Barcelona could have tried to sign him for half the money they paid to secure Dembele's services. The only thing missing from Son's cabinet are trophies and he would have definitely helped Barcelona win a few as well.

It would have been a great signing but the Catalans lacked the vision to pull it off at the time.

#3 Lorenzo Insigne

Juventus v SSC Napoli - Serie A

When you part with a player who is as good as Neymar Jr., you'd want to replace him with someone who has proven to operate at a very high level. That's why Napoli's Lorenzo Insigne should have been a top target for Barcelona.

The Italian international is one of the most technically blessed wingers of his generation and he had a wonderful outing in the 2016-17 season. Insigne scored 20 goals and provided 11 assists in 49 appearances for Napoli that term.

He was a standout performer in a very talented side that finished third in Serie A, just five points behind eventual winners Juventus. It was peak 'Sarriball' times at Napoli and Insigne would have been a great like-for-like replacement for Neymar.

Insigne was just 25-years-old at the time and would definitely have not cost more than €80 million.

#2 Raheem Sterling

Arsenal v Manchester City - Premier League

It is quite baffling that Barcelona were ready to break their transfer record for a player who was 19-years-old and had just one breakout season. It's not like they were short of options, especially given the kind of money they had at their disposal.

Manchester City's Raheem Sterling was 22 years old at the time and already had a reputation for being an electric presence down the left flank. The Englishman was the first-choice down the left wing for Manchester City.

In 47 appearances for Pep Guardiola's men in the 2016-17 season, Sterling scored 10 goals and provided 20 assists. The Premier League is one of the toughest leagues in the world and despite his lack of size, Sterling had already proven to be very effective.

He had joined Manchester City in 2015 from Liverpool for a sum in the ballpark of €50 million. Sterling would have cost Barcelona half of what Dembele did. The Englishman has since gone on to establish himself as one of the best wingers in the world.

#1 Kylian Mbappe

Manchester City v Paris Saint-Germain: Group A - UEFA Champions League

In the same summer that Paris Saint-Germain bought Neymar Jr., they made another very public statement of their intent by bringing in Kylian Mbappe on loan. The French teenage prodigy tore it up for AS Monaco in the 2016-17 season where they won the Ligue 1 title and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.

Mbappe scored 26 goals and provided 14 assists in 44 appearances for AS Monaco that term. He was clearly the 'next big thing' in football. He would have cost more than Dembele but it's not like Barcelona did not have the money or the option of signing him.

In an interview with Esport3 in October 2021, Josep Maria Bartomeu, who was the president of Barcelona at the time, said:

"[Mbappe's] signing was on the table, but the coaches preferred Dembele because they wanted a player to open the field."