Ballon d’Or contender opens up on relationship with Lionel Messi – ‘He made me love Barcelona’ | OneFootball

Ousmane Dembele stands as the absolute favourite ahead of next month’s Ballon d’Or gala in Paris.

Having led Paris Saint-Germain to their maiden Champions League triumph last season, many expect the Frenchman to beat Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal to win the prestigious trophy.

In a recent interview with Guillem Balague, Dembele opened up about his experience at Barcelona, notably sharing the same dressing room as seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi.

Dembele on his relationship with Messi

Dembele and Messi were known to be good friends during their time together at Barcelona.

Talking about the Argentine, Dembele credited Messi for making him fall in love with Barcelona.

“My relationship with Messi was wonderful from the first day. He told me that I had to be serious if I wanted to achieve my dreams. He is the one who made me love Barcelona,” he said.

Having joined Barcelona in 2017, Dembele played alongside Messi for four years before the Argentine’s tragic exit from the club in 2021.

During his time at Camp Nou, the Frenchman shared the dressing room with some of the most gifted players in the world.

When asked about his favourite teammates during the course of his career, Dembele notably mentioned Pedri, Sergio Busquets and Messi among the Barcelona players.

“Messi, Aubameyang, Reus, Busquets, Pedri,” he answered.

Pedri is the only one who is still playing for Barcelona right now. The young midfielder, in fact, is tipped to finish within the top five in Ballon d’Or final rankings.

Dembele was also asked to pick his favourite five-a-side team, in which he favoured all Barcelona players.

The Frenchman picked up Marc-Andre ter Stegen in goal while keeping Samuel Umtiti as the lone defender. In midfield, the former Dortmund starlet picked Sergio Busquets while Lionel Messi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were the attackers.