Raphinha transfer from Leeds United to Barcelona on hold as Ousmane Dembele agrees new deal
Raphinha’s protracted transfer from Leeds to Barcelona is “on hold” once again after Ousmane Dembele agreed a new contract with the club, according to Sky Sports.
The French winger saw his contract at the Camp Nou expire at the turn of the month, but both parties have remained in negotiations about a new deal with a 40% pay-cut.
Now he has agreed to those terms, the Spanish giants have prioritised confirming his return over the signing of Raphinha and the 25-year-old will now have to wait even longer to seal his dream move.
The La Liga outfit are planning to activate a second economic lever later this month which will help unlock transfer funds for the summer window, and Raphinha’s deal could be part of that.
However the club also want to sign the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Cesar Azpilicueta and may be forced to make a decision on whether to pursue the Brazilian further or not.
Get on with it
This has gone beyond ridiculous at this point and Leeds should force Raphinha to make a decision between joining Chelsea or staying at Elland Road at this point.
It has already begun to affect the club’s preparations for the new season after he was left off the pre-season tour to Australia, and now with a replacement already signed it could affect the club’s finances.
It’s great that the player has a dream of playing for Barcelona, but they’re obviously not as keen on him as he is on them and they’re proving it with their approach to this transfer.
Chelsea have agreed a fee with Leeds and according to reports already agreed personal terms with the player too, so Leeds must get tough and force a deal through or pull the plug entirely.
It’s time Barcelona were given a taste of their own medicine and shown that they can’t do everything on their own terms however they want, because it’s the Whites that have all the power and leverage in these negotiations.
In other Leeds news, the club have met the asking price for a blockbuster signing but the player has some doubts