Ousmane Dembele has incurred the wrath of his Barcelona paymasters after allegedly covering up an ... [+]
After going on strike at Borussia Dortmund in order to force through a transfer to Barcelona, Ousmane Dembele's attitude was brought into question.
It's something that has become a common theme during his time with the Catalan club too.
When Barcelona paid $115m for his services, making him one of the most expensive players in the world in the process, it's fair to speculate that they expected him to toe the line in terms of behaviour and professionalism etc.
That being said, the club can't say that they didn't know what the players' reputation was like beforehand, as it was common knowledge that he was often late for training, sometimes didn't turn up at all and even when he did, he wasn't giving one hundred percent.
It's been alleged that the Frenchman was injured in the opening game of this La Liga season against Athletic Club, but covered up the extent of that injury because he had arranged a trip to Senegal to see his brother over the weekend.
Admitting a problem would've ensured that he stayed in Barcelona under the auspices of the club's medical staff.
After reporting for training duty on Monday, it was quickly apparent that Dembele would be unable to complete the session, and a hamstring tear has subsequently been diagnosed, meaning he will be out of action for five weeks.
With Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez already on the treatment table, Barcelona's ire is completely understandable.
Ernesto Valverde, above all, will feel the most let down. After all, the coach steadfastly supported keeping the youngster when it appeared that the board were ready to cash in after a previous episode.
There were even talks of the World Cup winner becoming a makeweight in the deal to bring Neymar back to Barcelona, but it's alleged that PSG were told that Dembele's transfer was absolutely out of the question.
It will be interesting to see if that stance has softened in light of the most recent events, with a January move elsewhere more than possible now.
The player himself has been given enough chances to rectify his working habits.
Senior Barcelona first-teamers are known to have sat down with the youngster and given him sage advice on what it means to pull on the Blaugrana.
He has shown fleeting glimpses of the player that he can be too, but his match-winning performances can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Furthermore, his injury record since joining the club has been poor. From August 2017, just two years ago this month, he's missed the equivalent of an entire season.
With Philippe Coutinho having recently departed to Bayern Munich, it's clear that Dembele will be required for at least half of the current campaign, if not the entirety of it.
However, it's not beyond the realms of possibility either for the Catalans to be testing the water in the marketplace for potential buyers.
They'll not get close to what they paid for him, but there should be enough interest to make a sale viable, should the club desire.
At this point, it's hard to see a way back for him after the latest discretion...
