Barcelona confirm Ousmane Dembele is on verge of joining Paris Saint-Germain

Barcelona sporting director Mateu Alemany has revealed that French attacker Ousmane Dembele is on his way to France to sign for Paris Saint-Germain.

The 26-year-old, as expected, was not involved in Barcelona's Joan Gamper Trophy clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday evening, with PSG closing in on his signature.

The French champions managed to activate a €50m (£43.1m) release clause in his Barcelona contract before the buy-out fee expired, and the Catalan outfit's head coach Xavi admitted that his side were unable to match the offer on the table from Luis Enrique's team.

Speaking after the clash with Spurs at Camp Nou, Alemany said that Dembele was currently on his way to Paris in order to sign a lucrative contract with the Ligue 1 giants.

"Ousmane Dembele is on his way to Paris. The deal is done, we just have to sign all documents," Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano quotes Alemany as saying.

© Reuters

Barcelona took an early lead against Spurs on Tuesday through Robert Lewandowski, before Oliver Skipp netted twice in 12 first-half minutes to send the North London side ahead.

Ferran Torres managed to level the scores in the 81st minute, though, before Ansu Fati and Abde Ezzalzouli both struck in the final exchanges to secure a 4-2 success for Xavi's side.

Barcelona's preparations for the 2023-24 campaign are now complete, with the La Liga champions set to begin their title defence away to Getafe on August 13.

The Catalan side had been desperate to keep hold of Dembele, who actually left Camp Nou on a free transfer last summer before re-signing on a two-year deal, which included the low release clause.

© Reuters

Dembele will leave Barcelona having represented the club on 185 occasions, scoring 40 goals and contributing 43 assists, but he has struggled with a number of injury problems at Camp Nou.

The attacker started his professional career with Rennes in France, making 29 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 12 goals and registering five assists.

Romano, via Twitter, said that an official announcement from PSG confirming Dembele's arrival would be made later this week.

Depending on his fitness, the attacker could then potentially be in line to make his debut for the club against Lorient on Saturday, although it seems more likely that his first appearance will be against Toulouse on August 19.