Lionel Messi’s assessment of a young Ousmane Dembélé resurfaced in 2025, after the French winger led Paris Saint-Germain to the club’s first-ever Champions League title against Inter Milan. Now those statements are worth looking at again – after PSG’s straight success in the same tournament, with the Frenchman once again decisive.
Although he didn’t score against Inter, the winger was in sensational form. He served his teammates twice on his way to a record-breaking 5-0 victory. He then scored a penalty against Arsenal, as PSG drew with “The Gunners” before winning the penalty shootout.
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As a result of the European Cup triumph, Dembélé has now made himself one of the favourites to win this year’s Ballon d’Or – after he was already awarded the award in 2025. It has taken some time, but it is safe to say that the attacker has fulfilled the potential he had as a teenager. That makes Messi’s comments from when he first arrived at Barcelona even more interesting.
The Argentine’s prediction could end up being completely accurate
After impressing at both Stade Rennais and Borussia Dortmund, a then 20-year-old Dembélé moved to Camp Nou in a huge deal worth £135.5 million in 2017. Already in 2018, things showed signs that things were not going quite according to plan. But according to talkSPORT, Messi continued to support the promising star, saying:
“On the pitch, Dembélé is a phenomenon and it’s up to him how good he becomes. He has all the opportunities in the world to do exactly what he wants. He can be one of the best. On the other hand, he is a young man who is adapting to the city and the club. The less you talk about it, the better. It is necessary to leave him alone so that he can be calm.
“He has already realized his mistakes and has corrected them. We will help him focus on football.
Key statistics: Messi and Dembélé played 95 games together for Barcelona and combined for 15 goals.
Although the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s prophecy seems to have come true, it never happened in Barcelona. Repeated injuries and unstable form meant that Dembélé never reached the heights hoped for – scoring just 40 goals in 185 appearances.
Flourished under Luis Enrique
He moved to PSG in 2023, and under Luis Enrique, his luck has changed dramatically. As a result of two brilliant seasons, he can now follow in Messi’s footsteps – by becoming a rare player to lift the Ballon d’Or more than once (only ten players have made it so far). He was effectively the replacement for Messi at the Parc des Princes, and he has more than filled the void left by the magical Argentine.
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