Ousmane Dembele may be having trouble setting his alarm clock for training but he proved an early riser at the Camp Nou on Tuesday night.
It’s certainly easier for Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde to stomach his habitual lateness when he’s firing on the pitch – and against Tottenham, in a heavily rotated line-up, the 21-year-old stepped up as the Blaugrana’s main gunner in the absence of substitute Lionel Messi.
Below, we took a closer look at what was largely another impressive performance in the 1-1 draw.
STATISTICS
Shots – 2
On target – 1
Passes – 32
Key passes – 2
Crosses – 2
Pass accuracy – 75%
Dribbles – 3
Times fouled – 3
30-SECOND REPORT
This game was an opportunity for Dembele and friends to inject life in what was for all intents and purposes a dead rubber for already qualified Barcelona.
The Frenchman did exactly that with just seven minutes gone, catching the inexperienced Kyle Walker-Peters in a compromising position with most of Spurs’ players camped around Barca’s box.
Within a blink of an eye there was green grass in fron tof Walker-Peters, who sealed his fate with a slight stumble, before the on-rushing Dembele came to a dead stop and let the lunging Harry Winks fly right past him. One languid sweep of his left boot later and the ball was beyond Hugo Lloris.
Though that was his telling contribution it certainly wasn’t his only one. Little flicks, dummy runs, intelligently finding his team-mates. The €105m man is maturing – when he steps across the white line, anyway.
GOT RIGHT
INTELLIGENCE – As breathless as his goal was, it didn’t tell us something we didn’t already know about Dembele. He is frightening in open space and woe betide any team that lets him have it.
It is his work in close quarters against an organised defence that can leave a lot to be desired. This time there was a lot to be liked.
Though Barca were hardly funnelling him the ball, with Philippe Coutinho the trusted playmaker on the other wing, but Dembele used more than just his pace to extricate himself from trouble. In one instance he cunningly shielded the ball and won a free-kick in a dangerous position off Moussa Sissoko.
In another he burst down the sideline and instead of trying to thread the needle to the heavily marked Munir, pulled it back at a sharper angle some 20 yards to a wide open Coutinho.
His stat line now reads four goals and four assists in the last eight games, consistency that marks him as a man increasingly for all occasions.
GOT WRONG
LACKADAISICAL – Whether it’s over-confidence or lack of care, Dembele is still prone to being caught off guard while in possession.
In the first half, facing goal and on the outskirts of Barca’s defensive third, the World Cup winner dawdled on the ball and was caught out by Sissoko, leading to a decent chance for Son Heung-min.
To give up possession in such a position is simply anathema at the Nou Camp and Dembele must learn to take extra care in positions where doing the simple thing is Barca’s modus operandi.
VERDICT
Another encouraging display on the road to justifying why Barca felt compelled to spend half-a-Neymar’s worth on the Brazilian’s replacement.
Coutinho, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi remain the trident that Valverde will turn to in the very biggest games, yet the longer this run of form continues, Dembele should be considered an interchangeable piece rather than a potential liability. Now if only he can fix that alarm clock …
RATING: 8/10
All statistics are compiled using whoscored.com
