The French winger was the best against Athletic and has already provided 15 assists this year
Ousmane Dembélé is a footballer who is capable of the best and the worst in equal parts. The French winger played an unusual game against Athletic in an exhibition that had it all, where he shone with a header, a rare bird in his career, and three assists confirming him as one of the most defining factors in this section in 2022. Only Leo Messi and Kevin de Bruyne collect more goals than the Barca 7.
“Today Dembele played a complete game. Everything has come to pass for him. This is football and decisions are made and he plays it because he is extreme. It has great potential to make a difference. There are days when it’s thicker, but today it’s fantastic,” said Xavi Hernandez after Athletic’s beating. for the cause after taking one and a half feet out of the Barça club twice.
And it’s that since Dembele decided to stay last year, back on the winter market, he has become a fundamental footballer for Barcelona. The numbers prove it. In this 2022 he played 40 games in all competitions with the Barca shirt, scoring six goals and 15 assists in that period. It is in this last installment that he has managed to stand out with figures that will allow him to finish third in goals scored in the major European competitions this year, behind only Messi, who has 19, and De Bruyne. , which has 16. .
Dembele shines in the assists section, but he also fulfills the big demand his coach had asked him this season. Xavi wanted him to be a sharp winger and pass his teammates, but also a footballer who could make a difference in front of goal. That was Dembélé’s great duty and he solves it by being a player who ends up finishing many more plays. Against Athletic, he tried several times, scoring his fourth goal in just 15 games this season, compared to just two goals in 32 games last year.
“The winger is heads or tails,” said Xavi after the game, referring to Dembele. This time the coin came up head but only 20 days ago, in Milan, luck wanted it to be tails. On that occasion, Barcelona turned the whole game around to a Dembele who was ubiquitous, but who had one of his worst nights as a Barca player. The former Dortmund player lost a whopping 38 balls at the hands of Inter, a figure that made Barca tough and eventually led to ongoing transitions from the rival team.
Ending these two faces is the goal that Dembélé has in front of him at the moment. Of the 15 assists, nine have been split in just four games. Those numbers show the player’s ability, but also the little continuity he has in displaying all his virtues. “Today he has been great, but he needs to look for more great days like this one,” Xavi said after Athletic. That is the next step to be taken if the Mosquito is to be one of the leaders of the new Barca.
Source: La Verdad
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