Manchester United make initial contact with Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele

According to The Sport (h/t The Hard Tackle), English Premier League giants Manchester United have made initial contact with Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele.

The French winger is out of contract this summer and is free to talk to the clubs as soon as the transfer window opens in January. Chances of him penning an extension with Barcelona appear remote.

However, the Red Devils are not the only club linked to him, Liverpool have long been linked with the French winger along with Newcastle United.

The report (h/t The Hard Tackle) adds that United are preparing a mega-contract offer for Dembele as they plot to lure him away from Barcelona on a Bosman move in 2022.

Former Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman had earlier confirmed that the club wanted to offer a new contract to the player. But with Koeman sacked as a Barcelona manager, things may well change.

Dembele joined Barcelona in 2017 for £135.5m from German club Dortmund. While he has shown his stunning potential off, it has overall been underwhelming.

To date, the 24-year-old has managed just 30 goals and 21 assists in 118 appearances for the Catalan club. Barcelona, though, still appear to be rating Dembele highly, as suggested by their eagerness to tie him down to a new contract.

Dembele has missed around 98 games thanks to injuries. The Frenchman was part of the Les Bleus side that won the FIFA World Cup in 2018.

The Red Devils have added impressively to their attacking unit by signing the likes of Amad Diallo, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo, but have continued to keep eyes on Dembele and have been in regular touch with his representatives.

With United’s French striker Anthony Martial already facing an uncertain future at the club after years of inconsistency, should he leaves then Demeble might be seen as a back-up plan by the United management.