Dembélé 'pleased with club's confidence'

Ousmane Dembélé has started the season in fine form at FC Barcelona. Currently preparing for the Qatar World Cup with his fellow Frenchmen, he took time out to talk to the ‘Rothen s’enflamme’ show on RMC radio.

"I'm very happy" he said. "I'm feeling good and very comfortable at Barça, where I have the confidence of the coach and the club. That's good because a lot of things have happened in recent years. Now people are just talking about football and so much the better."

“When I came here, I was very young. But I have grown up now. From 2017 to 2021, I missed a lot of time because of injuries. They were constantly telling me that if I didn't keep working, I'd go stale. If I couldn't get stronger, I'd get hurt. It clicked first under Koeman, but now with Xavi I feel I have his full confidence and it's made me better. I feel really good now."

Dembélé has not suffered any further injuries since November 2021. “I'll cross my fingers and keep working hard. I have learned how hard I need to work to play and perform."

New contract

On his extended agreement with FC Barcelona, he said " Xavi played a key part in that. From the moment he arrived I could tell that he had faith in me. I felt obliged to stay after that.”

Looking ahead

Dembélé says that now "the goal is to win the Champions League with Barça, for the club to win it back after seven years. At the end of the day, it's winning that and titles like the league that matter most."