Zorc: No agreement between Dembele and Barca

Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc rejected reports claiming Ousmane Dembele has agreed personal terms with Barcelona.

Dembele has been strongly linked with Barca, who are seeking a replacement for Neymar following the Brazil international’s world-record €222million move to Paris Saint-Germain.

But Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke insisted it will take more than €100m to tempt his side into allowing the 20-year-old to leave Signal Iduna Park.

And Zorc insists there is nothing in a report from France that claimed forward Dembele has reached a long-term agreement over personal terms with Barca.

“I am not aware of a commitment,” he told reporters after Dortmund beat Rot-Weiss Erfurt 5-2 in a pre-season friendly.

Zorc does not expect the Dembele speculation to end any time soon but is unwilling to provide a running commentary.

“This will surely accompany us for a while,” he said. “It makes no sense to comment on these permanent rumours every time.”

Dembele said last week it was a “pleasure” to be linked with Barca and expressed his surprise at Neymar’s decision to leave for PSG.

The France international only joined Dortmund in 2016 in a move from Rennes, impressing enough in his debut campaign in Germany to be named in the Bundesliga Team of the Season, as well as winning the man-of-the match award in the club’s DFB-Pokal final victory.