Ousmane Dembélé’s decision this summer to leave FC Barcelona will be discussed by many for the foreseeable future. The 26-year-old decided to return to France after Paris Saint-Germain triggered an economic release clause.
Instead of staying with the Spanish club, the winger took a new challenge. So why did Dembélé believe it was time to leave Camp Nou for the Parc des Princes? The Frenchman credits those in charge of the new project for convincing him.
“Why did I sign for PSG? I spoke with the coach and president [Nasser] Al-Khelaifi,” Dembélé told Téléfoot (h/t SPORT). “They told me about the project, and I was also excited to play in France again. Everything is good at PSG. We have a great coach, and the speech I liked the president.
“It is the team in which I have learned the most. The team is very good. All positions are doubled with quality players who play in the best teams in the world. There is a lot of competition, but that is good for the team and puts pressure on us all to give our best.”
Dembélé’s decision to leave Barcelona isn’t sitting well with one club chief who took a shot at the former player’s loyalty to the Catalan side. These types of reactions will not be surprising from those within Barcelona.
Still, seeing how Dembélé performs at PSG under Luis Enrique will be interesting. Furthermore, he will be playing alongside Kylian Mbappé, at least for this 2023-24 season, to be the co-star in the attack and replace Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr.
