BARCELONA – Ousmane Dembélé added 100 official matches with Barcelona on Saturday, in the victory against Alabès, and thus the price of his signing rose to 135 million euros, when the five became effective million in variables to be paid by the Barça club to Borussia Dortmund.
Second most expensive signing in the history of Barça, behind a Philippe Coutinho for whom 145 million euros have been paid out of a total of 160 possible according to the variables and ahead of Antoine Griezmann, who cost was 120 million (although Atletico Madrid started a payment on the sidelines of another 10 million), Dembélé reached this first hundred games in his fourth season as Barça, burdened by the injuries that always cut short their growth.
For the French player, signed in the summer of 2017 after Neymar’s departure to PSG, Barça agreed with Borussia, according to reports from Football Leaks, a fixed initial payment of 105 million euros, more variables of up to 40 million, divided between matches played, Champions titles won by the Barça club and participation in the top continental competition.
For every 25 matches, 5 million euros had to be disbursed up to a maximum of 20 million, which were met this Saturday, and to this must be added another 10 million divided into two payments of 5 for each participation in the Champions. Another 10 million euros would now be needed to complete these variables, divided into two payments of five for each title in the continental tournament won by the Barça club, which with Dembélé in the squad have not been achieved.
The winger made his debut with Barcelona on September 9, 2017 in a derby against Espanyol, playing the last 24 minutes replacing Deulofeu and assisting Luis Suárez in what would be the final 5-0 of the day. A week later, however, he suffered a fractured femoral biceps tendon in his left thigh in the Getafe field, which left him more than three months old and was the start of a real viacrucis of injuries in his Barça season.
A total of ten injuries, the last in February 2020 that no longer allowed him to play again throughout the season, mark the permanence of Dembélé at Barça, in which he has been 534 days out, having lost until 85 matches due to these physical setbacks which at the time even led to the club being cited as its representative, suspecting the disorderly lifestyle of a player whose contract expires in the summer of 2022.
Author of 25 goals and 19 assists, the arrival of Ronald Koeman on the bench of Barça has caused a physical and football regularity not seen before in Dembélé, who already has 26 games this season and has linked the last 14 (nine d ‘them as a starter), having scored 6 goals and handed out five assists.