Ousmane Dembele ‘honoured’ to play for Barcelona

Ousmane Dembele has thanked Barcelona following his move to Paris Saint-Germain.

The French international has been working on a deal to join the Parisians since last month after admitting his desire to leave Catalonia.

Despite Barcelona’s attempts to convince him to stay with the La Liga champions, he has accepted the move, and will now begin a new chapter in his native country.

The 26-year-old winger has agreed a five-year contract at the Parc des Princes with PSG activating his €50m release clause at Barcelona as part of the negotiations.

The overall deal is rumoured to involve a 50/50 pay split been between Barcelona and Dembele/his agent, although the former believed they were entitled to more than €25m.

Barcelona will now look to reinvest the money generated by Dembele’s sale into their squad but the former Borussia Dortmund star had a positive message on his departure.

“I did not want to leave without thanking all the people at Barcelona who have supported me during these years: colleagues, coaches, club workers and managers”, he posted on social media.

“I have grown as a footballer and as a person and it has been a pride and an honour to wear the ‘Blaugrana’ shirt. Without a doubt, I take with me memories that will always be in my heart.”

Dembele is not expected to feature for PSG in their opening fixture of the season today against Lorient.