Former Barcelona striker Martin Braithwaite has lavished praise on ‘special boy’ Ousmane Dembele after spending two-and-a-half years with the Frenchman at Camp Nou. Braithwaite left the Catalan club this summer after terminating his contract. Barcelona had signed the striker in the winter transfer of 2019/20 season from Leganes to resolve their attacking problems.
However, the Denmark international as expected was not a hit at the club garnering just 10 goals across 58 games. But he still got to play alongside some real talent in Lionel Messi, Ousmane Dembele, Antoine Griezmann and Ansu Fati. He also talked about seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Leo Messi, labelling his exploits as ‘something else’.
Braithwaite feels Ousmane Dembele makes ‘more impact’ than new signing Robert Lewandowski
Barcelona have had a stellar summer transfer window this season, welcoming a whopping seven signings. Robert Lewandowski was their headline signing, who forced through a move despite Bayern Munich unwilling to sell him. The striker has continued his exploits from the Bundesliga side at Camp Nou as well, netting 8 goals in just 5 games so far. His acquisition was one of the reasons Barca terminated Braithwaite’s contract and let him join Espanyol for free.
The 31-year-old has now made a huge statement, claiming that Ousmane Dembele has more of an impact than the Polish striker at the club. Dembele to has redeemed himself under Xavi at Barcelona, contributing 4 assists and a goal in 5 games since the start of the new season. Talking about the two on Tot Costa, Braithwaite said:
“[Ousmane] Dembele is very good. I like him a lot. He has a huge talent. I have never seen someone with his talent. I’m serious. Leo Messi is something else, but after him, I haven’t seen any player like Dembele. The boy is special.
“Dembele individual talent has more impact than that of a player like [Robert] Lewandowski, individually speaking. Ousmane is incredible. A good player and a good person. Lewandowski scores a lot of goals, I am happy for him, he is a great professional.”
The French winger endured a period marred by injuries at Barcelona, missing over 100 gams since joining them in a £113 million deal from Borussia Dortmund in 2017. He was further being reluctant in penning an extension at the Catalan club, who as a result ordered him to leave immediately back in January. However, Xavi’s appointment changed the picture and the 25-year-old did commit to a new two-year contract.
Under Xavi, Ousmane Dembele is now looking like his version from Dortmund which help him rack up 22 assists and 10 goals in just 50 games. He now has 20 goal contributions [17 assists, 3 goals] already while featuring 35 times in Xavi’s team. If all he manages to stay fit throughout this season, Dembele could really attain the potential he ha to become one of the best.
So far so good for both Dembele and Lewandowski who have clicked together at Barcelona. Meanwhile, Martin Braithwaite has started his new spell at Espanyol with a goal on his debut against Athletic Bilbao. His former club Barca next faces Cadiz in the La Liga and are expected to brush aside the minnows as they done it so far with others.