Dani Alves has sent a message to Ousmane Dembele as he enters the final five months of his Barcelona contract having failed to secure a move away.
Last month, Barca were hit with a legal warning after a threat was made by sporting director Mateu Alemany that Dembele had been told that “he must leave the club as soon as possible.”
Blaugrana boss Xavi Hernandez had claimed he felt cheated by the Frenchman and the player was handed a final warning by the coach in what appeared to be a transfer ultimatum.
Dembele was subsequently excluded from the matchday squads for the Copa del Rey trip to Athletic Bilbao and La Liga trip to Alaves respectively, although officially he missed the latter due to illness.
Last week, the player’s agent Moussa Sissoko was caught on camera to be receiving a phone call from PSG sporting director Leonardo – further fuelling speculation of a move to Paris, which never materalised.
Have Your Say! Does Ousmane Dembele have a future at Barcelona? Tell us what you think here.
Dembele is out of contract at the Camp Nou on 30 June and the club had publicly stated their ambition to secure a transfer fee for him in the January window.
Contract talks between the Frenchman and the club had entirely broken down and while a turnaround in the relationship is now feasible, he looks certain to be in the final months of his deal.
Barca paid £105million – in a deal rising to a potential £135m – to sign Dembele from Borussia Dortmund in 2017 in a transfer that has become symbolic of the club’s reckless transfer policy.
However, they now are facing the increasing certainty of losing the player as a free agent this summer – with Dembele free to agree a pre-contract with other clubs since 1 January.
Despite this situation, Alves – a January arrival at the Camp Nou having left the club in 2016 – has insisted that the club and player must now look to make the most of the situation.
Alves told Spanish TV station Movistar when asked on Dembele’s situation: “The situation reaches a point where these things happen.
“As long as he is still in the club, you have to defend your shirt and defend your teammate.
“If he leaves at the end of the season, well, there are five months left, we have to take advantage of the fact that he is here for that length of time.
“In situations like this you have to be smarter than your ego. You have to think intelligently and take advantage of the fact that the player is there.
“We are here trying to create a healthy and positive environment, where there are no bad vibes.
“Barca is going to come back.”
Manchester United, Chelsea and PSG were among the clubs linked with a move for Dembele, but none made an approach to sign the Frenchman in January.
Barca are now facing the reality that the forward is likely to leave as a free agent this summer.
