President says 24-year-old Tottenham reportedly tried to sign on deadline day is ‘better than Mbappe’

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Barcelona president Joan Laporta has come out and claimed that Tottenham Hotspur-linked Ousmane Dembele is a better player than Kylian Mbappe.

The Frenchman’s saga at Camp Nou is still ongoing. Dembele rejected a new contract at Barcelona and even after he was publicly told to leave the club, he refused and stayed put.

Barcelona are absolutely furious with Dembele at the moment and there’s a good chance he may never play for the club again, especially after Adama Traore’s arrival in his position.

However, that hasn’t stopped Laporta from singing praises of the 24-year-old.

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Barcelona president: Ousmane Dembele is better than Kylian Mbappe

In Traore’s press conference yesterday, Laporta said, as per The Daily Mail: “I still think that Dembele is better than Mbappe.

“I don’t regret having said it (in the past) because we are convinced of his talent. That’s why we made him a very good renewal offer.

“Dembele has been accompanied by circumstances that have not been the best. He has had many injuries, he is a player who cost a lot of money and we all hoped to see him for many years.

“We have always wanted to understand and help him and from the club, we wanted to look forward and show his talent.”

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Dembele rejected Tottenham on transfer deadline day

Tutto Mercato Web revealed on deadline day that Tottenham made an offer to Barcelona to sign Dembele hours before the window shut.

The report claimed that the two clubs couldn’t agree a deal, but Spanish outlet Sport later revealed that Dembele refused to even talk to Tottenham and other interested clubs. That’s why a deal never materialised.

It is further claimed that Barcelona are furious with Dembele’s attitude and they believe that the Frenchman may have already agreed a deal with Spurs’ Premier League rivals Manchester United or Italian giants Juventus.

That doesn’t mean Tottenham cannot make a move for him again in the next few months, but it will not be easy to sign him now that he’ll be a free agent in the summer.

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