Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez is hopeful that Ousmane Dembele could yet stay at the club past this summer, despite the contract stand-off between the club and the winger’s representatives throughout the January transfer window.
Dembele’s current contract expires at the end of the season, and Barcelona reportedly told him to find a new club in January. However, the France international wouldn’t agree to wages lower than what he makes at Barcelona and ended up staying put, for what seemed like his last few months at Camp Nou.
But Xavi has been praising the 24-year-old’s professionalism in the face of the tense situation, and has reintroduced him to his team. Dembele is now expected to start in the second leg of the Europa League play-offs against Napoli this evening (Thursday). Apparently, Xavi and Dembele have had a heart-to-heart conversation in which they agreed to work hard in the best interest of Barcelona, at least until the summer.
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