Ousmane Dembele is like a small child – Kevin-Prince Boateng

Kevin-Prince Boateng has described former Barcelona teammate Ousmane Dembele as a ‘small child’ who constantly needs guidance.

The Ghanaian forward joined the Catalan giants on a loan deal until the end of the campaign in January while the Spanish champions held the €8m clause to sign the player permanently, which they did not exercise.

Boateng featured in just four matches for the Blaugrana and played a total of 303 minutes but failed to make an impact and was largely an unused substitute throughout his stint at the Camp Nou.

He has now criticised Dembele’s mentality – the French forward has faced a number of doubts regarding his self-discipline and has reportedly been spoken to multiple times by the club.

“He is like a small child,” Boateng explained to Sport Bild, as cited by Marca.

“He earns a lot of money, everything he does is public. You have to direct him in the right direction. If he doesn't learn, then it's his fault. For me, he is still a small child thrown into this huge group, into a giant pool.

“He cost €150m but he doesn't even know how everything works. He just wants to play football.

“The problem, and not only with Dembélé, is that they receive too much money. It cannot be that an 18-year-old man earns €4m net every year.”

Tags Kevin Prince Boateng Ousmane Dembele
La Liga - Club News