The relationship between FC Barcelona and Ousmane Dembele continues to deteriorate as they face a stalemate on the player's contract extension. Now, it has been suggested that the striker may make the shocking decision to join the club's biggest rivals, Real Madrid.

Earlier this week, threats and ultimatums were thrown towards Dembele. He was told that he has until the end of the month to find a new club, and was left out of the squad when Barcelona faced Athletic Club in the Copa del Rey. He was also reportedly told that he will face six months on the bench if he does not leave or renew.

It seems clear that the exit door is wide open for Dembele, even though he has said in the past that he wants to stay in the Camp Nou. Unfortunately, the club and his representatives are still unable to come to agreement about the terms of his contract extension.

With the Frenchman becoming available on a free transfer this summer, it's a mouthwatering prospect for some of Europe's biggest clubs.

Journalist David Sanchez told Marca: "I'd let Dembele leave for Real Madrid. I don't care where, what's important is that he leaves Barcelona as soon as possible. I wouldn't mind seeing him in white, in fact, I'd enjoy seeing Dembele at Real Madrid."

It will be adding insult to injury against the Catalan giants if Dembele decides to reject their extension offer and join Real Madrid on top of that. It seems far-fetched at the moment, but Los Blancos president Florentino Perez is not one to skip a great bargain.

However, the recently crowned Spanish Super Cup champions are understood to be on track to sign Kylian Mbappe from PSG. They are also openly interested in Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland. They have never given any indication that Dembele is in their radar, but they are likely to be aware of the contract standoff.

One thing that is keeping clubs cautious about showing interest is the fact that Dembele has been going through a significant amount of injury trouble in recent seasons. He is impressive on the pitch when he is fit, but his injuries make him a big risk to sign. After the injury issues with Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard, Real Madrid will likely want to avoid the possible headache.

Barca manager Xavi Hernandez made it clear that he wanted the player to stay, but he is also running out of patience when it comes to the new contract. He allowed Dembele to join the rest of the squad in regular training on Friday, and it remains to be seen if the player will continue to be left out or if Xavi will let him play against Alaves on Sunday.

Ousmane Dembele
Ousmane Dembele Cristian Trujillo/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images