According to rumors in Spain, Ousmane Dembele is requesting a bonus to stay at Barcelona, and his representative has begun contract negotiations. Negotiations to bind 24-year-old Dembele to a new contract appear to have dragged on interminably.
Dembele Demands an Incentive
The France international, who will be a free agent in the summer, appeared to be on his way out in January after rejecting Barca’s contract offers, only for a deal to Paris St. Germain to fall through on deadline day.
After finding a home on the right side under Xavi and regaining his spot in the first squad, things have picked up a notch, but there is still a lot of work to be done, with the winger’s agency wanting a bonus to sign at a lower wage.
This season, the winger has only made 14 LaLiga appearances, but he has already racked up 11 assists. More discussions are expected to take place this week as the Catalan giants try to prolong the contracts of not only Ousmane Dembele, but also Sergio Roberto, Gavi, and Ronald Araujo, according to Mundo Deportivo.
Mateu Alemany, the director of Barca, and Moussa Sissoko, the representative of Dembele, met in Marrakesh earlier this month. The objective of the meeting was not to discuss financial data; rather, it was to create a platform that would allow negotiations to resume, minimize past tensions, and improve the mood between the two parties.
Barcelona and Ousmane Dembele
After Ousmane Dembele rejected Barca’s contract offer in January, Alemany announced that Dembele would have to quit the club and would not play for them again.
On January 20, the Catalan giants left him out of the team, announcing openly that they planned to sell him during the transfer window. The Spanish giants have since made it clear to Dembele that they want him to stay at the club, although on a lower salary.
Ousmane Dembele’s representative is said to have promised them that they can accept a pay drop from his current £350,000-per-week salary, but that they will not sign at any cost. Dembele is practically a free agent, according to Sissoko, and as a result, he would demand a signing bonus, which the club does not intend to provide.
As PSG, Chelsea, Manchester United, and a slew of other big-name teams around Europe keep an eye on the issue, Dembele’s recent play may push Barcelona’s hand to complete the transaction.
Read: Barcelona is putting everything on the line to recruit a striker
