Chelsea have reportedly been given a clearer run at Barcelona's Ousmane Dembele, who is out of contract in the summer.
The former Borussia Dortmund winger is yet to agree new terms with the Spanish giants and is set to leave on a free transfer at the end of month. This has alerted a number of teams to his services, including Chelsea, who have a long-standing interest in the French star.
Thomas Tuchel worked with Dembele at Dortmund and has spoken in the past about a potential reunion at Stamford Bridge, saying: “Dembele’s talent was innate. Very, very unusual. We had a lot of top players on the team but Osmane was one of the craziest talents I saw. He is a very good player when he is in his top level. I am very fortunate to have trained him in my time at Dortmund. It was only one year; it should have been longer.”
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And Tuchel could get his wish after a key decision maker with Barcelona has admitted there are currently no talks between Dembele's agent and the club.
“Dembele's future will be known by him and his agents, I have my own personal opinion on this matter, but it is beside the point," said Barcelona director of football Mateu Alemany. “There is no news about him, just like in the last six or seven months. There is no negotiation with Dembele’s representative at the moment.”
This corresponds with comments from club president Joan Laporta, who told Catalunya Radio earlier in May: “He wants to stay, but he is very tempted by other options that offer better conditions. The offer has been presented for a long time and they [Dembele's representatives] have asked us for time until the end of the season, next week.
"We already wanted an answer before, but we can't force it because Dembele ends his contract. The coach and I like him. We have made a very important effort to keep him."
