Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are monitoring Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele ahead of a possible move in the January transfer window, according to the Daily Mirror.
Dembele only joined PSG from Barcelona in a £50m deal in the summer but he’s struggled to settle in Paris. The French international has featured six times so far but has failed to score or assist, leading to calls from fans for him to be dropped.
The 26-year-old has been unconvincing for the Parisians, who suffered their first league defeat last weekend, and he’s facing stiff competition for places as PSG also spent big to sign Goncalo Ramos and Randal Kolo Muani in the summer. Marco Asensio, Bradley Barcola and Kang In Lee also joined the club, so Dembele is under pressure to start performing.
Despite his poor run of form, manager Luis Enrique is hopeful the World Cup winner will start scoring for PSG soon.
“If I were a supporter of a team, I would pay to see Ousmane Dembele,” the former Barcelona manager said in midweek as quoted by the Daily Mirror.
“He’s a totally different player. He is unpredictable, overflows, [and] works magic. “It’s true that he may have missed things and didn’t score his first goal, but the day that happens, I’m sure he’ll score a lot later. This happens to all attackers. It’s wonderful for a coach to have a player of this quality and level available.”
Competition
Arsenal and Tottenham are keeping a close eye on the situation as the Mirror claims the North London duo are lining up audacious moves to sign Dembele ahead of the January window.
However, it won’t be easy as the report says not only are West Ham also showing an interest, but PSG are unlikely to sanction a sale this winter so early in Dembele’s career in Ligue 1.
The pacy winger has forged a reputation as one of the best forwards in the world, however, injuries have slowed down his progress. He was one of the best players at Barcelona last season as they clinched the La Liga title.
The versatile forward racked up 35 appearances, scored eight goals, and provided nine assists in all competitions. He shined for France as they reached yet another World Cup final last year but lost to Argentina in a penalty shootout.
Arsenal and Tottenham have made solid starts to the new season as they sit in the top four. Squad depth will be key in the course of a long campaign and they will both want to strengthen in January.
We will have to wait and see if either club will formalise their interest in the coming weeks but Dembele would be an excellent addition for Arsenal or Spurs if they could somehow pull it off.
Read more: Arsenal team news: Duo ruled out but key man could return vs Tottenham
