Barcelona insist they still have faith in Dembele
The Catalan club were forced to hold a meeting with the player's agent after the Frenchman failed to show up for training.
Barcelona held crunch talks with the agent of forward Ousmane Dembele on Monday, in a bid to assure the player that he is still very much wanted at the Nou Camp.
The club hierarchy are increasingly worried that the player will move away, with Premier League side Liverpool among the teams looking to steal him away as soon as January.
Given the huge £135 million fee that the club handed to Borussia Dortmund for the Frenchman's services in 2017, the club will be keenly aware that, on current form, they will be set to make a huge loss in the event of a sale.
According to Spanish sports newspaper 'Mundo Deportivo', Barcelona technical secretary Eric Abidal and general manager Pep Segura met with Dembele's agent on Monday by way of trying to draw a line under the whole saga.
The meeting was used to underline Dembele's importance to the club's first team progress; the forward having struggled to settle so far, scoring six in 15 appearances in an injury plagued start to the campaign.
Agent of Dembele, Moussa Sissoko, defended the player in a recent interview with 'Radio Monte Carlo', explaining: "We are aware that Ousmane has things to improve, but it is normal at his age. The people are on top of him. There was talk of a delay in the concentration for the game against Inter and the coach denied it. Now gastroenteritis. It's true that he called the club a little late, but he was sick. Even in this type of things a controversy is generated."
However the players agent remained steadfast in asserting his belief that Dembele will come good at Barcelona.
Sissoko said: "He continues to work in a great club, the coach appreciates him, like (France manager Dideir) Deschamps in the national team. And I know that Abidal is very happy with what Ousmane is doing, he knows that he trains well."
It remains to be seen if the frosty relationship between Dembele and Barcelona will thaw, but for now at least, the player has to focus on his commitments with national team France.