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Ousmane Dembele intends to remain at Barcelona, ruling out a deadline day move to Arsenal , and admits he is keen to play alongside fellow Frenchman Paul Pogba at some stage.
Having endured a testing time at Camp Nou following a big-money move in the summer of 2017, it had been suggested that the World Cup winner could head for pastures new before the current window closes.
The Emirates Stadium has been mooted as one possible landing spot for a man who joined Barca in a €105 million (£95m/$122m) deal, reports Goal.
Dembele is, however, eager to stay put, even when taking into account added competition for places.
He has seen the likes of Arthur and Malcom join Ernesto Valverde’s ranks over recent weeks , but his focus remains locked on battling with them for regular starting berths.
Quizzed by fellow gamers on gaming network Twitch as to his future plans, the 21-year-old winger said: “I’m staying at Barcelona, I’m ready to play the Super Cup.”
La Liga champions Barca are set to open their competitive campaign with a Supercopa clash against Sevilla on Sunday.
Dembele will be hoping to get the nod in that contest, having been restricted to just 12 Liga starts and three goals in an injury-disrupted 2017-18 campaign.
It could be that further additions are brought in alongside him before that challenge for more silverware takes place, with high-profile figures still being linked with Barca.
Manchester United midfielder Pogba is among those to have seen a possible switch to Catalunya discussed this summer.