Ousmane Dembele in Barcelona has been ruled out for four months after the club confirmed he had undergone a successful operation to repair tendon injuries in his right knee.
Dembele, whose Barcelona career has been ravaged by injuries since a transfer of 145 million euros from Borussia Dortmund in 2017, suffered the latest setback when he played for France in the European Championship 2020.
The 24-year-old had come in as a replacement in France’s second group game against Hungary but later had to be replaced himself in the final stages of the match.
Dembele had the operation at a facility in Finland by Dr. Lasse Lempainen and under the supervision of Barcelona’s medical staff. His recovery time frame means it is unlikely he will return to the club before the end of October.
Dembele was injured while playing for France at Euro 2020 / Tibor Illyes – Pool / Getty Images
This means that he will miss the first ten weeks of the new season and will catch up in terms of training and match practice when he is fully recovered.
Hoarding, thighs and other muscle injuries have been the most common reasons for Dembele’s absence during his career in Barcelona. He was forced to miss more than three months due to a broken thigh muscle just a few weeks after arriving at Camp Nou 2017.
The player encountered further injury problems during the second half of his second season, while he was only able to handle nine matches in all competitions during the 2019/20 campaign.
Although he was not completely free from hoarding problems in 2020/21, Dembele played 44 times in all competitions, which is the most prominent thing he has done in a single season for Barcelona.
Dembele played 44 times for Barcelona 2020/21 / Quality Sport Images / Getty Images
That’s what makes his latest stroke all the more frustrating for the player, while when he returns to fitness he has to compete with competition from the new signing Memphis Depay.
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