Ousmane Dembélé isn’t even officially out of the door at Barcelona, and it seems the club have already spotted the ‘new Dembélé’.
The Frenchman has decided to leave Catalonia after six years and move to the French capital to join Paris Saint-Germain on the back of enduring perhaps his best season in the Blaugrana colours.
Xavi Hernandez, the manager who managed to unlock the former Borussia Dortmund talent’s potential after a number of frustrating seasons at Camp Nou, wanted to keep the 26-year-old and recently admitted it “hurts” to see him depart.
But thanks to a meager €50m release clause – which will also be reportedly shared with his camp – in his contract, the La Liga giants are powerless to stop Dembele from joining PSG. However, there’s still enough time (and a bit of extra incoming funds) in the transfer market to make amends and head into the season with a rejuvenated attack.
Barcelona could look at Lyon sensation Bradley Barcola
Bradley Barcola was the breakout talent in France last season, ending the campaign with 14 goal involvements in 26 Ligue 1 games. The 20-year-old’s quick feet in possession and explosiveness have already attracted comparisons with his fellow countryman, Dembélé’.
In fact, he was on PSG’s radar before Dembélé’, and the Parisians even had a €30m bid rejected from Lyon earlier this summer.
According to SPORT, Barcelona could be interested in Barcola, who’s touted as the “new Dembélé'”. Lyon value their highly-rated winger at €50m – a figure which is likely to be out of the Catalan side’s transfer budget.
Interestingly the Frenchman is represented by Jorge Mendes. It is suggested that the Portuguese’s good relationship with club president Joan Laporta could facilitate this seemingly implausible operation should Barcelona decide to make a concrete approach. The super agent is also likely to play a big role in any potential push for Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva.