Barcelona forward accidentally drops massive hint on his future
The Ousmane Dembele transfer saga has been dragging on since the end of last year.
Ousmane Dembele may have just confirmed that he will continue to be an FC Barcelona player for the coming season. He did this by "accidentally" and indirectly dropping a major hint on social media.
A post on Instagram stories by striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang showed Dembele sitting casually in the Barcelona dressing room with other members of the squad earlier this week. While Samuel Umtiti is also in the video despite being believed to be on his way out, Dembele's situation is unique.
The Frenchman may be sitting on a pending renewal, but his existing contract already expired back on June 30. This is a different situation compared to those who are up for sale and are in the middle of transfer negotiations.
Needless to say, just turning up in the dressing room is already a big deal for a player who is believed to be currently out of contract. This is as big a hint as any to show that a renewal has already been signed despite the lack of official announcement.
On Monday, Dembele was spotted returning to Barcelona after his summer break in what many believed to be a last ditch attempt to reach an agreement with the club on a new deal. The locker room video came out on Tuesday, which may also mean that he is just there to chat with his (former) teammates.
There are no photos or videos of the player from actual pre-season training, so the video must be taken with a grain of salt. Anything can still happen, but everything points to a new contract.
All news has died down of interest from other clubs, and it has always been known that manager Xavi Hernandez is keen to retain the player. Talks broke down during the January transfer window, but it now seems as though the player will stay. Previous reports suggest that Dembele will now have no choice but to accept Barcelona's terms, which will inevitably involve a massive pay cut.