Dembélé’s Career Soars at PSG, Leads European Scoring Charts

A poor finisher - which made him miss the Ballon d’Or against Lionel Messi - at Barça in 2019, Ousmane Dembélé has improved considerably six years later. He has become a better finisher and is enjoying himself with PSG. While we have not yet completed the first quarter of 2024, he has scored 18 goals, more than anyone else in the five major European leagues, and by far. He even surpasses the goal machine Mohamed Salah who has 10. Only five men have surpassed the French winger this season: Robert Lewandowski, Salah, Harry Kane, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé. At 27, he is reaching the best level of his career.

His performances make his compatriot Mbappé forget. Dembélé is now the figurehead of this new-look team. Many fans are rushing to the club’s store outside the Parc des Princes to grab jerseys with his effigy. At this rate, Dembélé could well be on the podium of the magnificent Théâtre du Châtelet for the Ballon d’Or ceremony this year. "He has been literally unplayable and unstoppable," explains Julien Laurens, an expert on French football, to Mail Sport. He will add: "It was extraordinary, we hadn’t seen that in France for years. So much technique, dribbling, two feet, no pressure. At Rennes, it was like a UFO... something from another planet!"

His poor finishing and injuries have given way to good performances. His adventure at Barça is summed up by 14 distinct muscle injuries at the Camp Nou, with 784 days of absence and only 37% of league games played, according to Transfermarkt data. Dembélé eventually left Barcelona for PSG where he shows the full extent of his talent. Encouraged and supported by Luis Enrique, the Parisian club’s coach, he explodes. "We are witnessing a phenomenon," commented a columnist from Le Parisien. Luis Enrique describes Dembélé as a "Playstation footballer".

Dembélé’s career took off after the departure of Mbappé and other PSG stars. This transformation came four years after his marriage to a Moroccan woman in December 2021. Nearly a year after their wedding celebrated in Morocco, Dembélé and his Moroccan wife became the happy parents of a little girl.