Chelsea have made a late enquiry over a potential deal to sign Ousmane Dembele but will find it difficult to reach an agreement with Barcelona at this late stage of the window, according to Sky Sports.
Dembele has struggled since joining Barca in a big money deal from Borussia Dortmund in 2017 as a series of injuries have restricted him to making just 87 La Liga appearances over the past five seasons.
The 24-year-old’s future at the Nou Camp is in serious doubt as he has just six months left on his current contract and the French international is no closer to agreeing terms over an extension.
Barcelona chiefs indicated last week they will be forced to cash-in if Dembele doesn’t sign a new contract before the end of January and it’s led to widespread speculation linking the attacker with a move to several European clubs this month.
Chelsea are among those who’ve been strongly linked with Dembele in recent weeks and Sky Sports says the Blues have made an enquiry on deadline day to discuss a potential last gasp move for the player.
The media outlet claims Chelsea launched the move after learning that Dembele’s proposed switch to Paris Saint-Germain had fallen through with the attacker travelling back to Catalan from Paris on Monday morning after the deal stalled.
Deal ‘not impossible’
Sky Sports says a move to Chelsea will be difficult at this late stage in the window with Dembele’s high wage demands the main hurdle to overcome, but a source close to negotiations says a deal is not impossible despite the lack of time remaining until the window shuts.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta confirmed earlier today that Dembele could be heading to an ‘English club’ on deadline day. He’s quoted by Sky Sports as saying:
“Different solutions have been proposed and the last one depends on the player accepting it, so that he can go to an English club.”
If Chelsea fail to get a deal over the line today, then the report says the West Londoners will look to sign Dembele on a pre-contract ahead of a free transfer move at the end of the season.
We’ll have to wait and see how things develop but time is running out for Chelsea to get an agreement in place to sign Dembele today so Thomas Tuchel may have to wait until the summer to be reunited with the attacker.
