A nine-figure move to Barcelona at the age of 20 and the chance to play alongside Lionel Messi is the stuff of dreams for most mere mortals, but that was exactly what happened to Ousmane Dembele in 2017.
The French striker’s impressive form at Borussia Dortmund during the 2016/17 campaign caught the eye of Nou Camp chiefs and Dembele found himself as Neymar’s replacement following the Brazilian’s €222million move to Paris Saint-Germain earlier that summer.
So what was it like for Dembele, freshly out of his teenage years, to be dropped into a dressing room next to the Argentine legend, ranked at no.1 in FourFourTwo’s list of the greatest players of all time?
Dembele on playing alongside Lionel Messi
“I had a very good relationship with Messi from the very first day,” he tells FourFourTwo. “My locker was right next to his, and he gave a lot of advice to me. He was someone who instinctively knew what you wanted.
“He told me that I’d have to be serious if I wanted to achieve my dreams – after that, I watched and learned from what he did on the pitch.
“Whether he played as a number 10 or number nine, his positioning was exceptional, the way he seemed to make himself invisible on the pitch.
“Sometimes you don’t seem to see him for about four or five minutes, then as soon as he gets the ball, he instinctively knows what to do.
“Messi would know when Jordi Alba was going to double up front with him, when he was going to put the ball in. He understands football really well, positions himself very well on the pitch and you know – we all know – what he can do with his feet.”
The pair played together 95 times over four seasons in a Barcelona shirt before Messi departed for PSG in 2021, winning two La Liga trophies, plus a pair of Copa del Reys.
And while Dembele is now playing perhaps the best football of his career, acting as the fulcrum of PSG’s attacking during their 2024/25 Champions League winning season, it is clear that his time lining up alongside Messi will go down as a career highlight.
Asked if he will one day tell his daughter that he played with Messi, the 28-year-old replies: “I am already telling her now!” he smiles, even though she’s not even three years old yet.
