Ousmane Dembele has had his suspension extended by Borussia Dortmund until further notice as he continues to be unsettled by interest from Barcelona.
The 20-year-old Frenchman skipped training on Thursday and was swiftly suspended by the Bundesliga club for the weekend’s DFB-Pokal first-round encounter with minnows Rielasingen-Arlen.
Dembele is under contract with Dortmund until 2021 and an initial offer from the Spanish giants has been rejected by Dortmund.
And Dortmund have now made the decision not to lift the suspension on Dembele, with Sporting director Michael Zorc telling Dortmund’s website: “Our focus now is on a concentrated preparation of the team for the Bundesliga opening match against Wolfsburg in the coming weekend.
“Ousmane Dembele has the possibility to do individual training off the group.”
Dembele joined Dortmund a little over 12 months ago from Rennes on a five-year contract and has attracted top European suitors after a breakout season at the Westfalenstadion.
He scored 10 times in 49 appearances in all competitions in the last campaign while he broke his duck for France with the winner in the 3-2 friendly triumph over England in June.
