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What's the rumour?
There has been plenty of speculation regarding the future of Ousmane Dembele and now, Football London are reporting that Arsenal have received a major boost in their pursuit of the Barcelona winger as his camp has now scheduled talks with the Gunners.
In case you didn't know...
Ousmane Dembele signed for Barcelona from Borussia Dortmund for a staggering £135.5 million following Neymar's departure to Paris Saint-Germain. However, Dembele picked up an injury (hamstring tear) early in the season and missed a major chunk of it.
Barcelona went on to sign Malcom from Bordeaux just about a week ago and this has intensified the competition for a starting spot in Valverde's XI in the next season.
The heart of the matter
Ousmane Dembele is reportedly frustrated by the signing of Malcom. The Brazilian can play on either wing and also through the middle. He has also made an impact in their pre-season friendlies
Dembele is frustrated with the recent developments as he has put in good performances since his return. The Frenchman's agent has scheduled talks with the Barcelona top brass to discuss future plans.
Arsenal are in desperate need of a top quality winger and the departures of Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott has further augmented the problem.
Dembele hasn't had the best of summers despite his national team winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Didier Deschamps had initially deployed a mobile front three of Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Dembele.
However, the plan backfired against Australia and thereafter, they used Olivier Giroud as a target man with both Mbappe and Griezmann playing off him.
This meant that Dembele's presence was reduced to the bench.
Rumour rating/probability: 4/10
While Dembele's frustration and Arsenal's desperation are understandable, it is unlikely that Arsenal will be able to match Barcelona's valuation of the player. Arsenal might get him on loan but then again, why would Barcelona send him out on loan?
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What's next?
Dembele is too talented to have his Barcelona career cut short so early. He has been impressive for them and his best years are still far away. Barcelona will only do themselves a favour by holding on to the 21-year-old. But if Arsenal can land him, it will be a dream signing for new manager Unai Emery.
