Ousmane Dembele

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GifLord said:
He's 25 and plays like he's still 18. Decision making has barely improved since Dortmund days. Just a frustrating player overall with glimpses of what could have been.
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This is not accurate, I've missed very few Barca games since Xavi took over and Dembele's decision making has probably been his most improved attribute this season. It might not come off all the time, but he's cut down on unnecessary dribbling and really started to use his two footedness for crossing and assists.
 
Madridista2000 said:
Stay away from this United fans.
If you think Pogba is lazy Dembele is at another level. He has good days and a lot of terrible days.
His decision making is terrible. His end product/finishing is terrible.

There was a huge transfersaga with Dortmund to buy him. He even stopped going to training to force his move to Barcelona. He was supposed to be the replacement of Neymar. He was bought for 140 million EUROS.
In all these years he never lived up to expectation. A lot of problem outside the pitch. Stays up late to play playstation etc. etc.

Now he is refusing to renew. Another one chasing $$$$. One of the biggest flops in Barcelona history.

The last thing United need is a player with his attitude.
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100% this.

If we bring this clown in it will just show we have learned nothing yet again.

I'd rather play Amad at RW every single game than have to deal with Dembele.
 
Madridista2000 said:
Yes man. I don't rate him at all. Besides he is most likely injured when we play Barca :-)
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The guy created like 4 goals in his last 2 games against us and is unstoppable once he gets going. I'd rather avoid shitting diamonds twice a year, thank you
 
Madridista2000 said:
Stay away from this United fans.
If you think Pogba is lazy Dembele is at another level. He has good days and a lot of terrible days.
His decision making is terrible. His end product/finishing is terrible.

There was a huge transfersaga with Dortmund to buy him. He even stopped going to training to force his move to Barcelona. He was supposed to be the replacement of Neymar. He was bought for 140 million EUROS.
In all these years he never lived up to expectation. A lot of problem outside the pitch. Stays up late to play playstation etc. etc.

Now he is refusing to renew. Another one chasing $$$$. One of the biggest flops in Barcelona history.

The last thing United need is a player with his attitude.
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Most of the stuff here is stuff from years ago. He’s been in form for a while and to my knowledge he’s not had issues with Xavi

Players force moves all the time, and it’s always comical when people say “another one chasing money”. Aren’t all/most professionals in any field doing that? Why is it wrong for footballers to want to secure their financial future? If clubs do what’s best for them, why can’t players?

Bring the guy in
 
Rashford..

I like both of them so I personally want both and hope they can be taught to focus better for next season.
 
I've always been skeptical about his injury record and supposed "attitude" problems. Though the attitude bit could well be overplayed/perception. I would prefer signing someone like Antony (unproven but seems a hard worker with the right hunger/attitude) but budget constraints means the money could be saved and invested elsewhere.

From our perspective, i think it makes a lot of sense.
Glaring weakness at RW/attacking positions. Check.
Limited budget. Check.
Multiple other areas to strengthen. Check.
"Free" transfer. Check.
Young and has resale value if things go pear shaped. Check.

We should give him like a 20m (or so) signing fee to keep his wages at a "reasonable" level - because we will struggle to sell him on high wages if his performance(s)/injuries become an issue.
 
I do think we should be taking a look at him but there’s no such thing as a free transfer. Wages, signing on fees, maybe agent fees and it’ll be just like any other signing.
 
If there would have been a poll Sancho vs Dembele before Sanchos transfer, it would be 99% pro Sancho. How you expect Dembele to do better is beyond me.
 
backpass said:
If there would have been a poll Sancho vs Dembele before Sanchos transfer, it would be 99% pro Sancho. How you expect Dembele to do better is beyond me.
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While I would be in the Sancho camp, I don't follow your point. First we are talking about two very different players that affect the game in different ways, the performances of one aren't translateable to the other. And even today I don't think anyone would pay 70m-80m for Dembélé simply because he has had some very serious injuries. The same applied to Robben and Coman at some points.

Also I should have mentioned it in the previous post but there is a context to Dembélé being less injured since Xavi joined. Apparently they totally changed the way they train and intensity of training sessions, it was rumoured initially but Dani Alves mentioned it in an interview last month.

You got to know him thoroughly as a player. Is he very different now?

Xavi's secret is hard work. We have to fight, to do what we have always done. The only thing that has changed is that he is now a coach. His point of view is the same as when he was playing. We are working very hard. It's the first time since I've been at Barça that I've worked like this.

More than during Guardiola's period?

Yes. With no one have we worked like this on a physical level. It is also important to note that football has changed. Guardiola had a lot of good players and we didn't have to run up and down. We recovered many balls in opposition territory. Now, from time to time, it is time to run and, for that, we need a good physical tone. Now the work we did before is not enough for us.
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Tavern in the town said:
I do think we should be taking a look at him but there’s no such thing as a free transfer. Wages, signing on fees, maybe agent fees and it’ll be just like any other signing.
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It will still work out so much cheaper if you breakdown the maths. Dembele would cost you what, circa £50-£60million minimum if he was under contract? We would still have to pay signing on and agent fees along with his wages, while it won't be as much, if we signed him for £60m the total package including all the fees comes to £100m+. It will be significantly below £100m over the course of a 4-5 year contract if he was signed on a free.
 
If he chooses the right club and coach I think he could be a very shrewd signing for his new team. I get that there are concerns over his attitude and injury record, but at least the former can potentially be managed and who's to say he hasn't matured? He's about to turn 25, so all the reported attitude problems happened at a very young age, not that unusual for a young person even if the modern football world demands extreme professionalism from early on.

Could see him going to Chelsea if they try to get rid of some of their attacking players, given he's played under Tuchel in his one season with Dortmund. Don't remember if they had a good relationship but he performed well under him, and Tuchel was let go before Dembele started acting up to force his move to Barcelona.
 
Tavern in the town said:
I do think we should be taking a look at him but there’s no such thing as a free transfer. Wages, signing on fees, maybe agent fees and it’ll be just like any other signing.
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it only means you don't need to meet the demand of the selling club. There isn't much difference for the cost of the player's service in the end.
 
Tavern in the town said:
I do think we should be taking a look at him but there’s no such thing as a free transfer. Wages, signing on fees, maybe agent fees and it’ll be just like any other signing.
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You can't be moaning about a lack of mental toughness in the squad and then be looking at players like Dembele.
 
Wednesday at Stoke said:
You can't be moaning about a lack of mental toughness in the squad and then be looking at players like Dembele.
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Does he lack mental toughness? He has come back from multiple big injuries and dealt with the catalan press being on his back. Has he lacked maturity at some points? Probably, but mental toughness seems to be one the qualities that one could give him.
 
Would be the most United post Ferguson signing yet. Averages less than 30 games a season for 5 years, another big club willing to dump him while rebuilding. If Woodward was still here itd probably be done already
 
gajender said:
You surely don't believe that do you .
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Yes. Because 99% of the time these players won't renew their contract and will leave for free again. So the cost for 4 years of service is about the same. They will ask for huge sign on fee and salary.
 
ThierryHenry14 said:
Yes. Because 99% of the time these players won't renew their contract and will leave for free again. So the cost for 4 years of service is about the same. They will ask for huge sign on fee and salary.
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Not buying that even if they demand huge sign on fee and salaries it would still be significantly lower than total overall expenditure if transfer fees would have been involved .
 
JPRouve said:
Does he lack mental toughness? He has come back from multiple big injuries and dealt with the catalan press being on his back. Has he lacked maturity at some points? Probably, but mental toughness seems to be one the qualities that one could give him.
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He used to fade in and out of games even while he was at Dortmund. Barcelona bought on basis of future potential and instead he's fighting tooth and nail to get back to what he used to be. He plays in 20 minute windows, kind of like Luke Shaw, Martial etc.
 
Wednesday at Stoke said:
He used to fade in and out of games even while he was at Dortmund. Barcelona bought on basis of future potential and instead he's fighting tooth and nail to get back to what he used to be. He plays in 20 minute windows, kind of like Luke Shaw, Martial etc.
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Which has nothing to do with mental toughness.
 
gajender said:
Not buying that even if they demand huge sign on fee and salaries it would still be significantly lower than total overall expenditure if transfer fees would have been involved .
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May be. It doesn't matter for Arsenal as he is not someone Arsenal can afford. Edu/Arteta don't seems like actively looking in the free market for whatever reason.
 
SER19 said:
Would be the most United post Ferguson signing yet. Averages less than 30 games a season for 5 years, another big club willing to dump him while rebuilding. If Woodward was still here itd probably be done already
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Pretty sure Barca really wanted to extend him and it's he that wants to leave.
 
SER19 said:
Interesting, didn't know that. In any case I'd stay well away from that injury record
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Okay 'wants to leave' might not be exactly accurate, but I think Dembele and Barca were at an impasse regarding contract talks, so I imagine they wanted him to stay and he was probably happy to stay too, but they couldn't come to an agreement on the contract. That's about the gist of it I think. Fair point on the injury record though.
 
He looks like the player he was at Rennes and Dortmund.
 
JPRouve said:
He looks like the player he was at Rennes and Dortmund.
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Don’t say this to me. I’ve literally just kicked the habit and now you’re dragging me back in.

The thought of Sancho at his best and Dembele at his Dortmund best on the opposite side makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
 
I would take him at United, very few are better than him when he's playing like this.

He's likely going to have better options though.
 
Maybe playing with Ronaldo will sort out his attitude problems. He would transform our attack if he could play like this consistently.
 
WeePat said:
He'd be the closest thing we've had to Hazard if we get him. Beautiful to watch.
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I tend to believe he probably wants to work with Tuchel again. However other than money there is no other reason to leave Barcelona. Xavi trust him and play him almost every game.
 
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