"Keep it open..." - Fabrizio Romano drops intriguing Chelsea transfer claim amid "crazy saga"

The race for Chelsea target Ousmane Dembele is still ‘open’ despite the winger ‘getting closer to extending his contract’ with Barcelona, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Dembele became a free agent at the end of June after running down his previous deal with the Catalan giants, but it now seems as though he could re-join Xavi’s revolution.

Last month, talkSPORT claimed that Chelsea were the favourites to sign the France international, with Thomas Tuchel eager to be reunited with his former star.

However, it now seems as though Dembele is set to put pen to paper on fresh terms with Barca following protracting negotiations.

Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo (via Football.London) state that the 25-year-old ‘is very close to signing a new contract which will reduce his salary by 40%,’ although he is only expected to sign for two years, until June 2024.

In recent years, Dembele has established himself as one of Europe’s top talents, registering 54 goals and 61 assists in 229 senior club appearances.

Chelsea will surely not be giving up hope of enticing him to Stamford Bridge just yet, therefore, even though his arrival in west London is looking less and less likely.

Romano has informed GiveMeSport that Barca are in the driving seat for Dembele’s signature yet has refused to rule Chelsea out of this ‘crazy saga’.

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He told GMS: “Now Dembele seems to be open. They are not 100 percent in agreement yet, so we have to wait a bit and see what happens next week, but Dembele is now getting closer to extending this contract with Barca.

“So, let’s keep it open because it’s a crazy saga this Dembele one, but now for Barcelona, there are chances we can say.”

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