In a recent interview, former Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez addressed a question of great interest: why has Ousmane Dembele never performed too well at Barcelona?He also explained why Dembele later chose to leave Barcelona and join Paris Saint-Germain.
As one of the key figures in bringing in Dembele back then, Fernandez admits in this interview that Barcelona did make some bad decisions in the transfer.He also admits now that the club didn’t really find the best way for Dembele to play at the time.
“Dembele was very young when he came to Barcelona and suffered a hamstring injury right after he arrived, which affected him a lot.”Fernandez said, “Because he was young, he didn’t quite understand a lot of things.And we didn’t help him in time.”
Barcelona is a special club in itself, with the media and fans demanding a lot from their players.And Dembele always seems to be on the tip of the storm since he arrived here.Whenever he has a little problem, it is immediately magnified.
For example, some people say that he often goes out at night, but in fact, many of these claims are rumors.Others have criticized him for being late for training, but in reality other players are in similar situations, they just aren’t exposed or protected.In contrast, Dembele is an easier target for accusations.
In the summer of 2017, Barcelona paid €148 million to sign Dembele from Borussia Dortmund.The transfer was a sensation at the time.But in the years he played for Barcelona, he was unstable and often injured, and there was a lot of negative news off the field.
At the age of 28, he still hadn’t lived up to expectations, and in 2023 he left Barcelona, ending what had been an unsuccessful run.He then joined Paris Saint-Germain, but at first, he didn’t do much better in Paris than he did in Barcelona.
What really changed Dembele’s form was the arrival of new coach Luis Enrique.This coach gave Dembele more trust and patience.He adjusted Dembele’s position from winger to “pseudo nine”, which is a role between striker and midfielder.This change allowed Dembele to find his rhythm and he was finally able to better utilize his abilities.
In the 2024-25 season, Dembele helped Paris win every title possible.This was a major turning point in his career.
The reason why Dembele didn’t play at Barcelona wasn’t just because he had his own problems, but there were many external factors as well.For example, injuries, difficulties in adapting to the environment, mismanagement of the club, and too much pressure from the outside world.And in Paris, a change of environment, coupled with the coach’s support and tactical adjustments, he really found his form.
This also shows that sometimes a player’s bad form is not necessarily because he can’t, but because he hasn’t found the right way to stimulate his potential.
