When the clock hit midnight to signal the end of June, Ousmane Dembele officially become a free agent, which should interest Liverpool.
What’s the story?
Well, June 30th was the last day of the France international being contracted to Barcelona.
Dembele made 149 appearances in total following his £135.5m move from Borussia Dortmund, scoring 32 goals while also providing 34 assists.
According to Spanish outlet SPORT, Liverpool were monitoring the winger’s situation as he neared free agency, so it will be interesting to see if Jürgen Klopp now acts on the 25-year-old’s availability.
An earlier report even stated that Liverpool had contacted Dembele’s representatives to ask about him.
If the Reds remain keen, they will need to act fast, as Chelsea are said to have already sent the Frenchman a contract offer.
Thomas Tuchel knows Dembele well, having worked alongside the attacker during their time together at Borussia Dortmund.
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In what was his final season at the Camp Nou – barring any surprises – the World Cup winner scored two goals in 32 appearances, while also providing 13 assists.
Of course, his goalscoring could improve, but Dembele was in fact the highest assist maker in La Liga last term, finishing ahead of Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior.
That speaks volumes given the fact he only really came to life once Xavi replaced Ronald Koeman in November.
Liverpool should sign Ousmane Dembele
In our view, Liverpool should take a gamble and offer Dembele a one-year contract.
Of course, there are obvious question marks surrounding him, with Goal outlining how his destructive behaviour – including a gaming addiction and lateness for training – caused issues for him in Catalonia.
However, that article was released in 2018, and judging by his progress under Xavi, it seems he can knuckle down under the right manager.
Klopp is arguably the best man-manager on the planet, so if anyone can get a tune out of Dembele, it is the German.
Furthermore, after allowing Sadio Mane, Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino to depart, Klopp needs at least one more attacker to add to Darwin Nunez if Liverpool are to be competitive on all fronts next season.