Tag: Dembele

Barcelona even stronger now without Neymar, says Ter Stegen

The German goalkeeper has hailed the signings of Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele but also had words of praise for the PSG forward

Neymar’s €222 million move to Paris Saint-Germain has only served to make Barcelona stronger this season, says goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

The departure came at a time of perceived institutional crisis at Barca, with fan anger at the running of the club compounded by a thrashing to Real Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana.

However, Ernesto Valverde has led a serene march towards La Liga glory this season, and Barca are unbeaten after 24 league games – a run stretching back a club-record 31 league contests – with a healthy lead over Atletico Madrid in second.

Though Barca’s fabled ‘MSN’ strikeforce of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar has been broken up, Ter Stegen believes the squad as a whole has stepped up after the latter left, inspiring their success this term.

“The quality of Ney, you can’t explain it,” Ter Stegen told ESPN . “Because he was super important for us, as a person [and] in the team, as a footballer.

“Now, everyone needs to understand what he did because maybe he wants to win something else, also personally.

“His decision only he knows but in the end we had to compensate all this and this is not easy because he had so much quality, but we did it in a different way and now we have a very, very strong team.

“I think we’ve got some new players who have made us even stronger and hopefully they feel good and comfortable in the team and they adapt very fast.”

Two of the players drafted in to compensate for the loss of Neymar are Ousmane Dembele and Philippe Coutinho.

The pair joined in deals that could be worth over €300m, but Ter Stegen says both deserve time to show they can fill the Brazil star’s boots.

“Dembele didn’t play very often because he was injured [and] Coutinho just came,” Ter Stegen said.

“We always need to give them time and be patient because they are young and they have some great years ahead.”

Barca travel to Chelsea on Tuesday for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie. Valverde has named the strongest squad possible, with only the suspended Nelson Semedo and ineligible Coutinho missing.

Source: www.goal.com

Barcelona’s Dembele on track to return before Chelsea clash

Ernesto Valverde seems confident the attacker will be fully fit well before the club meet Chelsea in the Champions League

Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele is expected to return to full fitness by next week, according to head coach Ernesto Valverde.

The France international suffered a hamstring injury in January and was ruled out for up to a month by club medics.

Dembele’s setback came less than two weeks after he returned to action following a more serious hamstring tear, which saw him sidelined for nearly four months after his transfer from Borussia Dortmund.

The 20-year-old will not play a part in Barca’s Copa del Rey semi-final second leg against Valencia on Thursday but could be in line for the La Liga game against Eibar on February 17, which takes place just three days before the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Chelsea.

“He’s okay,” Valverde told a news conference when asked about Dembele. “He’s started training sessions. I hope he can come back into the squad for next week.”

Gerard Pique is another who is likely to miss Thursday’s game at Mestalla, after he picked up a knock during the 1-1 derby draw with Espanyol.

Valverde refused to rule the centre-back out of the match but suggested January signing Yerry Mina could make his debut if Pique is unavailable.

“He finished the game in discomfort, with a little injury, but as of now he’s not ruled out,” said Valverde. “We’ll see how he is today [Wednesday]. He’s going to train and we’ll see.

“Yerry is in the squad and ready to play. It depends on the coach’s thinking whether he will start.

“The fact there are players who can play in different positions is an advantage for him and for the team. We have to decide depending on the situation.

“I knew Yerry Mina from watching videos and now from him training with us, but I don’t know him in our competition. I hope he adapts well.”

Barca beat Valencia 1-0 in the first leg at Camp Nou.

Source: www.goal.com