Barcelona ready to advance renewal talks with 25-year-old in February

Ousmane Dembele was one of the protagonists of the French team that reached the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. But his poor performance against Argentina at the Lusail Stadium has left him at odds with the French media and fans alike.

However, in the aftermath of the defeat, Dembele is thought to be determined and hungry for trophies and wants to help Barcelona achieve something significant during the second half of the campaign.

To that end, Barça have also been left impressed with Dembele’s conviction and want to send out a clear sign of support to the attacker, following harsh criticism of his performance against Argentina, reports Diario SPORT.

The report suggests that Barcelona are very happy with Dembele’s commitment. They also recognise the fact that the forward requires a contract extension in order to commit his long-term future at Camp Nou.

As such, the Catalans are keen on advancing the renewal talks to the month of February. The club believe this is the right time to hold contract talks, especially given the fact that the player is not attracting too much attention in the transfer market.

Dembele had extended his contract at Barcelona in the summer, signing a new deal until 2024. But there were great sacrifices made from the player’s side, who settled for a relatively lower salary in order to continue his development with Xavi.

But with the Frenchman now emerging as one of Barcelona’s best attackers, the club are ready to hand him a new deal that may not only increase his salary but also secure his long-term future at Camp Nou.

However, Barcelona may face a few roadblocks in their quest to renew Dembele. The club have already found it difficult to officiate the contract extension of Gavi due to Financial Fair Play rules and one would expect the club to similar issue when extending the contract of Dembele later this season..