Despite running his contract down ahead of the latest transfer window, one of Barcelona's in-form stars has insisted he never wanted to leave the Catalan side.
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Following Xavi Hernandez's arrival in the Barcelona hot seat in November 2021, Ousmane Dembele has seen a drastic upturn in form.
The French winger finished the 2021/22 campaign with his best output in a Barca shirt, finding the back of the net twice and assisting 13 goals across all competitions.
Despite his resurgence, though, there was a lot of uncertainty regarding his future in Catalonia, with his then-contract with the club expiring in June and speculation linking him with moves to a number of Europe's biggest clubs, including Paris Saint-Germain.
After effectively becoming a free agent for about two weeks, however, the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner managed to find a resolution with the cash-strapped LaLiga giants on a new two-year deal, and he has now insisted that the thought of leaving the Camp Nou never crossed his mind.
"I always told Xavi that I wanted to continue here, if he took a long time it was because of negotiations, but I always said that I wanted to continue at Barca, and in the end we are all happy," the Vernon native told Mundo Deportivo.
"There was none of that [a pre-agreement with another club], I only spoke with Barca. And I told my representative that only Barca."
Dembele's new contract with the Blaugrana reportedly saw his salary being reduced by 40%, but despite this, the France attacker is eager to continue to grow under Xavi's tutelage.
"Yes, I am very well here, very well with the coach, I have a very good relationship with him, and very well with the team," he added.
"There are many young people, there is a very good atmosphere in the club and I am very happy here.
"The relationship with Xavi is very good, he has always told me the truth, he supports me a lot and I am happy.
"I like coaches who go straight ahead, Xavi tells me the truth, if you're going to play, if you're fine, if you have to improve… I'm very good with Xavi."
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