Barcelona give up on forward deal; ready to move on to new targets

Barcelona have finally closed the door on the Ousmane Dembele contract saga after the player's agent Moussa Sissoko refused to respond to their offer. The Catalan club will now lose the French winger on a free transfer when his contract expires on June 30.

Dembele joined Barcelona from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth over €140 million in August 2017. The France international showed glimpses of his true potential during his time at the Camp Nou, with his most impressive spell coming in the second-half of last season.

Xavi Hernandez remains a big fan of the 2018 World Cup winner, but could convince him to sign a new deal. Barcelona were ready to offload Dembele in January but found no buyers owing to his contract situation.

The Barcelona manager was expected to banish the speedy winger from the first-team squad, but instead showed faith in Dembele and offered him regular minutes. The Frenchman registered 13 assists in 18 games to repay the manager's faith, but refused to accept the offer on the table.

Despite talks breaking down in January, the club reopened talks with Dembele and his agent on the insistence of Xavi, who believed the player wanted to stay at the club. However, according to Sport, Barcelona sporting director Matheu Alemany has finally given up on retaining the wide forward.

Barcelona will not hold any further meetings with the player or his representatives and are now awaiting his departure on June 30. Dembele's departure on a free transfer will come as a big blow to the Catalan outfit, but getting his salary off their wage bill will help them in the transfer market.

Dembele will not be short of suitors when he enters free agency. A number of clubs across Europe are monitoring the situation, and have already made contact with Sissoko over a potential move.

English Premier League giants Chelsea are thought to be the frontrunners at the moment. Thomas Tuchel is keen to reinforce his squad this summer, and has been armed with a £200 million budget following Todd Boehly's recent take over of the west London club.

Apart from the Blues, the likes of Liverpool, Juventus, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain are also said to have made offers. The 24-year-old's decision is likely to be based not only on the wages on offer, but also the signing bonus each club offers along with his contract.