Ousmane Dembélé has managed to make a name for himself and achieve success as one of the best footballers of today, surpassing other stars and now holding the Ballon d’Or.
His talent had been evident since he was at Stade Renneswhere he spent a season alongside Columbia Juan Fernando Quinterowho did not hesitate to praise him and even compared him Lionel Messi.
Juanfer bows to Dembélé
While the Colombian was taking his first steps abroad and the French just starting his career, paths crossed the 2015-16 season at Rennes. After recalling how he saw him then, Quintero said in an interview on His YouTube channel ‘JF10TV‘:
“I arrived at Rennes on the last day of the transfer window and about two weeks later we were called to a meeting. A young thin man walked in and greeted me. Pedro Henrique said to me, “Watch out, this kid is a star…” I wondered who he could be..,” said the former River Plate player (via SER). “I have never seen anyone as talented as Dembélé. In training he left everyone in the dust and I thought, ‘Who is this kid?’ He was flying. It was impressive” he continued, expressing his admiration for his former teammate.
A few seconds later, clearly intent on continuing to praise Dembélé, Juanfer compared him to the star of Argentine soccerwho many consider the greatest footballer of all time:
I’ve seen Messi of course, but Ousmane… at 17 years old to hit the ball like that with both feet, with so much personality – it was impossible. I’d come home and think, “I’ve never seen anything like this; this kid is crazy.”
The truth is that the skills Dembélé showed during his time at Rennes saw him move to clubs such as Borussia Dortmund and later, FC Barcelonawhere, interestingly, he shared a dressing room with Messi before he founded at Paris Saint-Germain. While Leo also played for the Paris club between 2021 and 2023, Dembélé joined the team in August 2023, just after the Argentine’s departure.
During their time at Barcelonathey won two La Liga titles (2017-18, 2018-19), one Copa del Rey (2020-21) and one Spanish Super Cup (2018). However, in their four seasons together, they never managed to win the coveted title The Champions League trophy, which they have not lifted since the 2014-15 season.
However, this comparison to Messi comes at a time when Osumane is experiencing one of his best moments on the field. As one of the key players at Paris Saint-Germainhe will aim to defend his Champions League title and also win Ligue 1.
He also faces a lot of challenges with The French national teamas he strives to win what would otherwise be his World Cup in the last three tournaments, having won in 2018 and finished second in 2022 after losing to Argentina on penalties.
Looking forward to the future tournament to be played in the USA, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19, France will be included Group Ialong with Norway, Senegal and the third opponent to qualify from the international competition between Iraq and Bolivia (Tuesday 31 March). They will play theirs opening game on June 16 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey against Senegal.