‘Whenever I saw Ousmane Dembele play alongside Kylian Mbappe for PSG, I felt there was a slight inferiority complex – as if he played down his own ability in order to serve Kylian’ Frank Leboeuf on how Dembele stepped out of Mbappe’s shadow

Kylian Mbappe of France celebrates with teammate Ousmane Dembeleafter scoring his team's second goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match between France and Iraq at Philadelphia Stadium .

For a long time, Ousmane Dembele was regarded as one of the most exciting attacking talents in the game, but one who was failing to consistently meet his undeniable potential.

After impressive back-to-back seasons at Rennes and Borussia Dortmund, the Frenchman made a £135million move to Barcelona in 2017, a fee which made him the second-most expensive player ever at the time.