Let’s go over the bad news first. Ousmane Dembélé last played for FC Barcelona on November 27th against Borussia Dortmund, in the group stage of the Champions League.
That was before Culers had ever heard the name Francisco Trincão. That was before Quique Setién was in charge. That was before a global pandemic. It feels like a lifetime ago.
In fact, Dembélé has only made nine appearances this season for the Blaugrana. His only goal came against Sevilla. Interestingly enough, half of those appearances came when Messi was still out injured to start the year. This means that five of the Frenchman’s nine showings this year came on the right wing, with other four on the left wing.
Francesc and I discussed our trepidation about whether or not Barcelona should risk Dembélé against Bayern on the
The Coutinho business is shocking, but he’s probably not the Bayern Munich player that Barcelona need to worry about the most. For the full preview of the Champions League fixture, check out the latest edition of The Barcelona Podcast.
Now here’s the good news. At worst, the club has been using social media videos to at least make Bayern believe that he is ready to make an impact.
If Dembélé is fit, expect him to come off the bench. It’s completely unreasonable to ask a player who has been out for almost nine months to start a Champions League Quarterfinal. I can’t imagine the medical staff would sign off on that kind of demand on his body either.
But the 23-year-old could change the match – in twenty minutes, ten minutes, or even two minutes. As was showcased in the tactical breakdown, Bayern like to press the ball via the flanks. If they fail to do so and the Blaugrana are able to bypass the press, that could leave space for Barcelona wingers to attack.
It’s been well-documented that Griezmann is not used as a winger. Luis Suárez and Messi are also operating in the middle of the field. If Setién starts the midfield-four that has been rumored of Vidal, Busquets, Roberto, and de Jong, then there will no be natural wingers to start the game. That leaves Ansu Fati and Dembélé as the wild cards.
Fati has been sensational in his first season with the first team, and there is no ‘but’. Bayern Munich will prepare for the teenager, and they’ll probably be prepared for Dembélé too. Yet, there is something different about the Frenchman. While Messi is the X-factor in that he can be magical at any moment, Dembélé can be chaos personified. Setién has been criticized for his use of substitutes, but if Messi hasn’t tipped the scales in Barcelona’s favor yet, the Barça manager may have the biggest ace up his sleeve for either team sitting on the bench.
Dan Hilton is an American journalist, broadcaster, and current Editor-in-Chief of BarcaBlog. Extensive work as a play-by-play broadcaster, producer behind the scenes, and quite average player in his younger years has given him a well-rounded and informative perspective on the sport. Alongside BarcaBlog founder Francesc, Dan started The Barcelona Podcast in 2017.
