Xavi is playing it safe with Dembele!
Catalan Barcelona decided to play it safe in the new contract of Ousmane Dembele and will pay him only if he plays a certain number of matches.
Since 2017, when Ousmane Dembele became a Barcelona player, he has missed a total of 99 games due to injuries. This figure is really impressive, because we rarely have the opportunity to watch the winger's play, which he showed back at Borussia Dortmund.
Xavi's arrival as head coach was marked by real reforms. He's already fired his physical therapists, is putting together a list of players to sell in the winter, and is planning to acquire a few footballers for himself. The Spaniard also introduced a system of penalties and forces players to appear in training an hour and a half before the start. Therefore, it’s not surprising that against this backdrop, Barcelona are trying to compensate for Dembele's huge salary by tying it to the number of midfielder's matches.
At the same time, Xavi himself publicly expresses support for the Frenchman and in every possible way tries to calm him down,
“There will always be injuries. The problem is that there are too many of them. You need to train well, in the gym, preventing injuries. You have to do everything to feel good.
In my opinion, Dembele can be the best in his position if he works. I have no doubt that he can make a difference at Barca and become a world star. We must help him. Obviously, his new contract is a priority,” Xavi said.
Dembele is only 24 years old and with the right approach to business, he still has a whole career ahead of him. A huge number of injuries are not a reason to give up, especially if Barcelona brings together a new team of doctors who will be able to prevent the departure of their players for long periods of time.
The initiative to tie the Frenchman's salary to the number of matches looks somewhat cynical, because he is hardly the culprit in these circumstances. This looks like an analogue of the situation with Coutinho, when the club specifically refuses to let go of the Brazilian due to the need to pay bonuses to Liverpool if he plays more than a certain number of matches.
The fact that Barça are trying to save on everything is understandable, because they are now in such a period. But how this will affect the image of the club in the coming years is anyone's guess. Now they are not much different in greed from the same Daniel Levy of Tottenham. Only a total crisis plays into their hands, because of which it looks justified.
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