- Dembele was set to stay at Barcelona
- PSG swooped in to get him onboard
- Forward remains calm despite troubled start
WHAT HAPPENED? The reigning Ligue 1 champions completed the transfer of Dembele after activating a "private" clause in his contract which restricted his price to €50.4 million (£43m/$55m) in the summer. Although the Catalan club wanted to hold on to him, as Xavi viewed the winger as integral to his plans, the forward had a change of heart when Paris Saint-Germain expressed their intention to bring him to the Parc des Princes.
WHAT THEY SAID: "Indeed, I said I would stay at Barcelona, but after contacts with PSG I was convinced to leave,” he said in an interview with L’Equipe. Dembele also insisted that Kylian Mbappe had no role in his transfer, adding: "Kylian did not try to convince me, I came to Paris because I love the club, it is a French club and I love it. I come from Evreux, not far from here. Everyone here talks about Paris Saint-Germain. It was written that one day I would sign for this club. I have many friends, supporters of the club, who always tried to convince me to come. Was it easy to choose after my best months at Barcelona? I wanted to sign for PSG.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Dembele has struggled to live up to the billing in his new club and is yet to find the net after making 13 appearances for the Parisians. Nonetheless, the 26-year-old has insisted that he is not losing sleep over his barren run and remains confident in his abilities.
“I don’t judge my performances by the goals I score. You can score a goal and play a bad game and you can not score and still be very good,” Dembele said. “I will improve my stats. I sleep very well at night and I always trust myself. Even when it doesn’t work out, I try again.”
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT? Dembele will hope to end his goal drought when PSG take on AC Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday at San Siro.
