Bartomeu reveals the driving force behind Dembele signing instead of Mbappe

Former Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu has admitted that the club had the option to sign Kylian Mbappe ahead of Ousmane Dembele in 2017.

When asked why they didn’t do so, he answered: “His (Mbappe’s) signing was on the table, but the coaches preferred Dembélé because they wanted a player to open the field.”

It turned out to be an awful decision as Dembele has had a very disappointing stint at Barca so far. The French winger has suffered multiple injury problems and only made 80+ league appearances over the 4 years.

Mbappe, however, has risen to become one of the world’s best players and is reportedly eyeing a move to Barca’s arch-rivals Real Madrid next year.