Forward who Jurgen Klopp was "in love" with scores again - Chelsea were also keen

Former Liverpool and Chelsea target Ousmane Dembele looks back to full sharpness at Barcelona, as he netted for them in a 4-0 win away at Cadiz this weekend.

Dembele joined the Spanish giants for a ludicrous €105 million plus a reported €40 million add-ons from Borussia Dortmund, but has been plagued with injuries since arriving.

Despite looking like he was surplus to requirements in January, the Frenchman has replied strongly to his critics. Since December 2021, he has picked up 15 assists for Xavi’s side, scoring three goals. 

These were the sort of numbers which attracted Barcelona to spend the fee in the first place, and top Premier League clubs, including Liverpool, to monitor his situation.

The Reds were keen when he left Rennes for Dortmund in 2016 and several years later when he joined Barcelona.

In 2018, Jurgen Klopp was asked about a swoop for Dembele after he failed to settle in at Camp Nou.

The Liverpool boss was unusually open about his interest, saying: "Oooh, he’s on the market? Now I’m interested!

“Ok, I never comment on transfer rumours… I’ve already said much than I usually say.”

Mundo Deportivo also reported last year that Klopp was ‘in love’ with the idea of bringing Dembele to Anfield.

Chelsea were in a strong position to sign the forward last season if he didn’t sign a new deal at the apparently cash-strapped Barcelona, but he decided to stay despite reported interest from the Blues, Arsenal, Newcastle, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain.

The Frenchman being back in form can only benefit his own chances of reaching a lofty potential, and also being selected by Didier Deschamps for France’s World Cup squad this winter. 

He was an unused substitute in the World Cup final back in 2018, as his side beat Croatia 4-2 - and Deschamps hasn’t selected him since 2021.

He could return to the squad for their matches against Austria and Denmark later this month.