Barcelona creative wizard will not join Chelsea in the summer – report

Speaking during the live telecast of Barcelona’s La Liga clash against Sevilla, ESPN correspondent Moi Llorens made a major claim regarding the future of Ousmane Dembele.

The 24-year-old winger is in the final three months of his contract at Camp Nou and has been heavily linked with an exit although, recent form and his growing importance in Xavi Hernandez’s side have led to talks about a potential extension.

Nevertheless, talks over a new deal are yet to take place and, as things stand, Dembele remains on the exit ramps at Camp Nou.

There have been links to the likes of Manchester United, Newcastle United, Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool in the recent past.

However, Llorens has now claimed that Dembele would have joined reigning European champions, Chelsea, at the end of the season, but that is no longer an option for the French international.

Dembele’s links to Chelsea go back to the January transfer window when the Blues made a lot of efforts to try and sign him. The Premier League giants’ manager, Thomas Tuchel, worked with the winger at Borussia Dortmund and was able to extract the best out of him at the time.

However, a move failed to materialise at the time as the ex-Rennes wonderkid refused to leave Barcelona. But, there could have been a reunion in the summer, although, it is off the table now, as per Moi Llorens.

Chelsea are currently facing severe sanctions from UK Government due to their owner, Roman Abramovich’s association with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin. It prohibits them from indulging in any transfer activity, putting paid to their hopes of landing Dembele.

However, things could change for the Londoners if they are bought out by new owners, the process for which is already underway. As things stand, though, a move to Stamford Bridge for the Barcelona winger is not on the cards.