Chelsea ‘very’ interested in signing Barcelona’s €140 million misfit investment on loan

Barcelona are keen on offloading Ousmane Dembele after his latest contract offer snub. The 24-year-old’s current deal runs out in six months and the club are keen to cash in on him now rather than lose him for nothing in the summer.

The Catalan giants have issued an ultimatum to the forward to find himself a new club before the January transfer window slams shut. The club are even willing to listen to offers as low as €4 million to get him off the books.

And, as things stand, there seems to be no shortage of interest in the Frenchman. Manchester United are believed to be keen on signing the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner.

Now, Alfredo Martinez via Onda Cero is claiming that the Red Devils’ Premier League rivals, Chelsea, are ‘very interested’ in Dembele and are willing to pay a fee to take him on loan for the rest of the season.

This is not the first time that Chelsea have been linked with the 24-year-old attacker. The presence of Thomas Tuchel as manager only serves to fuel the speculations further, considering that the German coached Dembele at Borussia Dortmund for a year and enjoyed working with him.

The current Chelsea boss able to get the best out of the French international during their time together at Signal Iduna Park and could look to recreate that partnership at Stamford Bridge. The thought of a reunion could appeal to the player too, while the Blues have the financial means to meet his wage demands as well.

Dembele, though, remains intent on seeing out the season at Camp Nou. The ex-Rennes prodigy recently put out a statement that he would not give in to ‘blackmail’, amid claims that Barça will exile him to the stands in case he does not leave and not sign a new deal.

With little over a week for the transfer window to close, it remains to be seen how the matter of Dembele’s future resolves itself.