New Barcelona head coach Xavi believes Ousmane Dembele can be the best player in the world in his position and has urged the club to prioritise a new deal for the winger.
Dembele has failed to justify his transfer fee, reported at the time to be worth up to €147m with add-ons, since joining Barca from Borussia Dortmund in August 2017.
He has made 119 appearances for Barca in total, starting 76 of those. To put that into context, 10 players, three of whom left ahead of the 2020-21 season in Luis Suarez, Ivan Rakitic and Nelson Semedo, have featured more in that time, with Sergio Busquets (209) leading the way.
The France international returned from a five-month lay-off in last week's win against Dynamo Kiev, only to sustain a hamstring injury in that game that will again keep him out.
Despite Dembele's persistent fitness issues, however, Xavi made clear at his Camp Nou unveiling on Monday that he wants Barca to keep hold of the 24-year-old.
"He can be the best footballer in the world in his position," Xavi said at a news conference. "He has spectacular abilities and a winning mentality. His renewal is a priority right now.
"We have to work with him and demand a lot. That will also depend on him, on his mentality. He will have to train well to prevent injuries."
Dembele has scored 30 goals and assisted 20 more for Barca, meaning he has been directly involved in 0.65 goals per 90 minutes.
That is an identical return to highly regarded Liverpool pair Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, among players from Europe's top five leagues since August 2017.
However, it does lag considerably behind the likes of fellow forwards Erling Haaland (1.39), Lionel Messi (1.29), Robert Lewandowski (1.27), Kylian Mbappe (1.24) and Neymar (1.14) – the man he replaced at Camp Nou.
Dembele's existing deal is set to expire at the end of the season and he can therefore discuss a free transfer with other clubs from January 1.
Barca have numerous other issues to contend with between now and then, not least in terms of potential targets ahead of Xavi's first transfer window at the helm.
Asked if he is hopeful cash-strapped Barca can bring in new recruits, Xavi said: "We are going to assess it with the club and we are going to decide.
"It is soon, but we are going to work to strengthen the team. It is always an opportunity. For me, it is clear that we must ensure all the players we have are clear about what they each have to do in every moment of a game."
Xavi's first game in charge of Barcelona, where he spent 17 seasons during his playing career, is against city rivals Espanyol on November 20.
David Moyes hands over medal to his father after West Ham end wait for trophy
David Moyes handed his Europa Conference League winners’ medal to his father after ending West Ham’s 43-year wait for a trophy.
Jarrod Bowen’s dramatic last-minute goal sank Fiorentina 2-1 as the Hammers secured a first piece of silverware since 1980’s FA Cup, and a first European trophy since 1965, on a historic and emotional night in Prague.
Moyes’ dad, 87-year-old David Snr, has been on every step of West Ham’s European tour and joined his son on the pitch after the final whistle.
“He was the first one, I thought I should get it round his neck,” said the jubilant West Ham boss. “He’s watched a lot over the years and I hope he enjoyed it.”
West Ham led through a Said Benrahma penalty on the hour but were immediately pegged back by Giacomo Bonaventura’s strike.
But when Bowen chased Lucas Paqueta’s ball over the top, Moyes almost found himself going full Jose Mourinho.
“The moment he went through I was edging down the touchline,” he added. “If it was going to be anyone, I thought ‘this is the moment’.
“But I couldn’t do a full Mourinho knee slide as the grass was a bit dry and I’d have ended up on my belly.”
Moyes has written his name in West Ham folklore, joining Ron Greenwood and John Lyall as trophy-winning Hammers managers.
A place in next season’s Europa League means the club has qualified for Europe three campaigns in a row, for the first time.
“I actually think the last two years have been an incredible journey,” he said.
“It’s an incredible achievement to do so well in Europe, you look at some of the very good teams who find it a struggle. It’s great credit, we’ve turned a disappointing season into a super season.”
Bowen has come a long way from beginning his career at non-league Hereford, and he is planning to party.
“I’m so buzzing, all of us are just going to go mad I think,” he said. “You have to celebrate.
“When the final whistle went I just thought ‘this party is going to be crazy’.
“I’m just a little boy from Leominster who never thought I’d be talking like this. My family are crying and it just shows me how far I’ve come.”
It was a memorable way to sign off for Declan Rice, destined to leave this summer but with the legacy of becoming only the third captain, along with Bobby Moore and Billy Bonds, to lift silverware in the club’s 128-year history.
The England midfielder has a year left on his contract, and West Ham hold the option of another, but Arsenal are poised to firm up their interest in the coming days.
The only downside to West Ham’s big night was an object thrown from their end which left Cristiano Biraghi with a nasty cut on the back of his head, forcing referee Carlos Del Cerro Grande to briefly halt play while a message over the PA system implored the fans to stop throwing missiles.
The club “unreservedly condemned” the incident while a UEFA inquest will follow with charges likely.
It was a double cup disappointment for Fiorentina, who were only narrowly beaten 2-1 by Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia last month.
“We lost two finals playing really well, and it’s a shame,” said coach Vincenzo Italiano. “Tonight, I honestly didn’t imagine it could finish like this.”
West Ham promise to take action against fans who threw objects onto Prague pitch
West Ham have condemned the behaviour of a section of their support after Fiorentina defender Cristiano Biraghi was left bleeding by an object thrown from the crowd during their Europa Conference League final victory in Prague.
The game was goalless in the 35th minute when Biraghi went over to take a corner from in front of the end of the Eden Arena where West Ham supporters were sitting, with the player struck by what appeared to be a vape pen as cups and other objects rained down on him.
He required a head strapping in order to continue, after referee Carlos Del Cerro Grande had briefly called a halt to the game and a stadium announcement had issued a warning for fans to stop throwing things and respect the players and officials before the match could continue.
West Ham issued a statement promising to take action against anyone found to have committed an offence and ban them from attending matches at the London Stadium.
“West Ham United unreservedly condemn the behaviour of a small number of individuals who threw objects onto the pitch during tonight’s UEFA Europa Conference League final,” said the statement.
“These actions have no place in football, and do not in any way represent the values of our football club and the overwhelming majority of our supporters, who have behaved impeccably in Prague this week and throughout our last two seasons in European competition.
“We will work with the police and other stakeholders to review the incidents and act against anyone found guilty of an offence.
“In line with our zero-tolerance approach, anyone identified will have their details passed to the police and will be given an indefinite ban and therefore be unable to enter London Stadium and travel with the club. There is no place for this kind of behaviour at West Ham United.”
West Ham won 2-1 thanks to a penalty from Said Benrahma and a goal in the 90th minute from Jarrod Bowen to land their first major trophy since lifting the FA Cup in 1980.
Let’s wait and see – Declan Rice unsure if he has played final game for West Ham
West Ham skipper Declan Rice does not know if he has played his last game for the club after the Europa Conference League victory over Fiorentina.
The England midfielder has been linked with a move away from the Hammers this summer.
And Rice may have signed off his West Ham career by becoming only the club’s third captain, along with Bobby Moore and Billy Bonds, to lift silverware in their 128-year history after the 2-1 victory in Prague.
Rice told BT Sport: “It’s not a goodbye yet. Look at the moment there’s a lot of speculation about my future.
“There is interest from other clubs, that’s out there, but ultimately I’ve still got two years left at West Ham (one year plus option).
“There hasn’t been nothing yet (offers). Let’s wait and see, who knows.
“I love every minute of it here, you can see the smile on my face. It’s not about that tonight, it’s about celebrating and that’s what I’m going to do now.”
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