Manchester United had agreed a deal with Barcelona to sign Ousmane Dembele, and both clubs had signed the paperwork for the deal before it fell through, it has been claimed. France Football, via Sport Witness say Dembele decided to stay at the Nou Camp despite pre-filled documents being sent to both clubs.
United ended the transfer window without the marquee signing they were after due to a last-minute u-turn from Dembele.
Having targeted Jadon Sancho throughout the window, they were subsequently left looking elsewhere with just days to go after they were unable to agree a deal with Borussia Dortmund.
Barcelona winger Dembele emerged as a potential target, and United officials spent the final few days of the window scrambling to complete a deal with the La Liga side.
Barca wanted him gone in order to free up wages for Lyon striker Memphis Depay, who was ready to fly to Catalonia to put pen to paper after a £25million fee was agreed.
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And according to France Football, everything was agreed for Dembele to swap La Liga for the Premier League.
The two clubs had already signed off on the deal, and paperwork was sent off for the French winger to be signed, claims the report.
However, with just hours to go on deadline day, Dembele opted to stay and fight for his place in the Barcelona side.
That left Ronald Koeman raging, as he was subsequently unable to afford a move for Depay.
The u-turn also had implications for Leicester City, who were set to sell Islam Slimani to Lyon as Depay’s replacement.
The Algerian, who was deemed surplus to requirements at the King Power, had agreed terms with Lyon and was ready to join, it has been claimed.
Slimani was in limbo at Leicester prior to the collapsed deal, having failed to make the squad for any of Brendan Rodgers’ matchday squads so far this season.
He made a rare appearance on Sunday evening, coming on as a late substitute against Aston Villa in Leicester’s 1-0 defeat.
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Having spent last season out on loan at French side Monaco, he now appears set to fight for his place in the side.
For United, they were forced to end the window without the world-class winger they were after, instead opting for youth in that position.
Facundo Pellistri, an 18-year-old from Uruguay, was signed for a fee in the region of £9m late on deadline day from Penarol.
Another teenage winger, Amad Traore, was signed from Atalanta for a fee rising to £37m – but he will only join the club in January.
Meanwhile, Dembele has been left in limbo at the Nou Camp, as it seems he isn’t a part of Koeman’s plans going forward.
The Frenchman was ordered to report for extra training sessions last week while his team-mates were given four days off, in order to improve his fitness due to his long-standing injury issues.
He played for an hour against Getafe on Saturday, the first time he’s started a game since last November.
Barcelona are expected to reignite their interest in Depay when the January transfer window opens, and are likely to try and offload Dembele again in order to free up wages.
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