Chelsea needs to think very carefully about many things at the moment.
Some examples are the most sensible route back to the Premier League title, their current squad, the future under Thomas Tuchel and their transfer strategy.
For as much as some may clamour to see Ousmane Dembele reunited with the coach who helped take him from a promising youngster into one of Europe's most expensive attackers, the 24-year-old should be used as a symbol for where Chelsea's recruitment has gone wrong in the past.
Dembele's horrendous injury record is the clearest red flag here, but some may still be blinded by the hope Tuchel can work his magic once more in west London.
Fabrizio Romano reported a quote from Barcelona director Alemany on Thursday morning announcing the imminent departure of the player they bought for £126m in 2017.
"It's clear that Dembele does not want to continue with Barcelona. He doesn't want to be part of our project. We told Dembele he has to leave immediately. We expect Ousmane to be sold before January 31st".
Chelsea was linked with the winger last week, and the connection is blindingly obvious to make given Tuchel's success and continued admiration for the player.
Speaking with Sky Sports just before the Champions League final, Tuchel picked the French attacker as one of the most talented players he's ever coached.
"One of the first names that pops into my mind is Ousmane Dembele when he stepped in at Dortmund. Like that was a pretty natural talent and very, very outstanding.
"But Dembele was of the craziest natural talents because he was shooting free-kicks with the left, shooting corners with the left. Going to the other corners doing the inswing with the right. Going to penalties, shooting with left, shooting with right, dribbling, running, passing."
Tuchel went on to express how incredible that talent was given he was only 18-years-old, and his development had not ended yet.
But another Tuchel quote from Ben Lyttleton's 2017 book "Edge" in which the coach reflected on the player's talent sadly foreshadowed the biggest struggle after leaving Dortmund.
"He can play at the highest level. There are still many traps out there, but they are not in football terms."
As we spoke about last week when the Blues were linked to Dembele, his awful injury record is what should provoke doubt over buying him from the Camp Nou. The £27m fee site TransferMarkt values Dembele at reflects how poorly the move has turned out in the four years since.
Missing 102 club games through injury since joining Barcelona and already out for 14 La Liga fixtures this term proves how little football Dembele has enjoyed and the unrelenting injury woes that have derailed his progress.
You also cannot dismiss the sheer amount of attacking options Tuchel currently has in his squad likely makes any further additions highly unlikely until next summer.
Christian Pulisic has shown how that fragility can severely damage an attacking group craving rhythm and consistency.
The only upside to this dangerous deal would be the previous connections between player and coach and the hope that Tuchel could revive a talent that was so dazzling in the Bundesliga.
But hope is a word all too familiar for Chelsea fans assessing several doubted attackers. Signing Dembele at this current moment would be solving more issues for Barcelona than Chelsea.
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