Paris Saint-Germain have completed the signing of winger Ousmane Dembélé from Barcelona, the French club announced on Saturday.
The French club’s initial plan was to pay the €50 million ($54.9m) in the player’s buyout clause that expired at the end of July. Dembélé rejected that proposal and urged the clubs to negotiate an agreement that would satisfy all parties. However, the final fee is is expected to remain around €50m, ESPN reported on Wednesday.
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“I’m delighted to be joining Paris Saint-Germain and can’t wait to play for my new club,” Dembélé said on the club’s official website. “I hope I can continue to grow here and make all the club’s fans proud.”
The Ligue 1 champions had been interested in Dembélé for a long time, and Barca boss Xavi was keen to keep the winger but accepted the significant transfer fee would help ease the club’s financial issues.
Dembélé arrived at Barca to replace Neymar in 2017 in a deal worth €105m from Borussia Dortmund, but struggled to make the impact he had hoped, scoring 40 goals in 185 appearances.
Last summer, Dembélé almost left the Camp Nou as a free agent but eventually reached an agreement to renew until 2024.
The Catalan club have Raphinha and Ferran to cover his potential exit, but Xavi has publicly called for more reinforcements, and Dembélé’s departure is expected to shake up Barca’s transfer plans.
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