Shit as a starter. Nothing new. The maximum he can muster up every game is 30 good minutes. Same story every time. When he starts, he's good for the first 20-30 minutes, then he disappears and never recovers in that game. Perfect sub, but horrible as a starter.
Still think we shouldn't bend over backwards trying to renew him, especially not anywhere close on his and his agent's terms. Better to just let him go and cut our losses now when we can. Those 30 or so world class minutes per game, and even that only on a random every 3rd game...he's just not worth the hassle. He's also turning 25 now, not a youngster anymore. His speed and agility will only get worse as the years go by. Not to mention the injuries. I wouldn't say that for a normal 25-year old player, but we know Dembele and his unprofessional attitude are gonna shorten his career on top for a few years at least. As soon as he turns 28,29, he'll probably be done at the top level, and even until then I don't ever see him lighting up the world (at least not for more than the occasional game, like he's done his whole career), and that's if he even stays fit in all that time.
Even though I don't like the idea of neither Adama or Depay staying long term either, I still think we'd do better keeping those two for the next 2-3 seasons (thus buying Adama and giving him a 3 or 4 year deal and extending Depay for 2 more years) over making that offer to Dembele and over paying him in the process for sure. Especially when you think both Adama and Depay's wages together are probably still lower than Dembele's wage.
