Ousmane Dembele told he must leave Barcelona before end of January

French attacker can leave for free when his contract expires in the summer

Ousmane Dembele has made 87 La Liga appearances in four-and-a-half seasons at Barcelona scoring 18 goals. AFP

Barcelona have told French attacker Ousmane Dembele that he must leave the club before the end of January.

Dembele, who joined the La Liga giants from Borussia Dortmund in 2017 in a deal worth €140 million, has yet to agree a new deal and can leave for free when his contract expires in the summer.

Debt-ridden Barca are desperate to avoid that scenario and want to pocket some cash in the current transfer window.

“With Ousmane and his agent we began conversations around July so it's been six months and a bit,” said Barcelona director of football Mateu Alemany.

“We've talked, we've talked, we've talked. Barca has made different offers.

“We've tried to find a way for the player to continue with us but these offers have been systematically rejected by his agents and today, January 20, eleven days before the last period of his contract ends, it seems obvious to us that the player does not want to continue at Barcelona and he is not committed to Barca's future project.

“In this scenario he and his agents have been informed that he must leave immediately because we want players committed to this project and therefore we hope that a transfer will take place before January 31.”

Manager Xavi Hernandez left the 24-year-old out of his squad to Athletic Bilbao in their last-16 Copa del Rey clash on Thursday.

Barca 2 Real Madrid 3: Spanish Super Cup semi-final player ratings

BARCELONA RATINGS: Marc-Andre ter Stegen 7 Needed to be alert as Madrid started well and continued to threaten. Left exposed for the first. Excellent save from the outstanding Benzema on 72 minutes but couldn’t prevent the rebound. AP

Dani Alves 7 Smart early stops against his compatriot Vinicius but yellow carded for stopping the rapid foe after 50 minutes. He took that one for the team. Did well for an hour before tiring. AFP

Gerard Pique 7 Played his 42nd clasico at the back of a high line which was a risky back three, but a risk worth taking in an enthralling game that went to extra time. Barca twice came back against the La Liga leaders, but couldn’t a third time. Reuters

Ronald Araujo 8 Felt his hamstring after trying to keep up with Vinicius and couldn’t keep up with the Brazilian when he put Madrid ahead after 26. Fast. Frustrated by Madrid, but Barca’s best defender as he closed down opponents and fared well in one on ones. AFP

Jordi Alba 6 Smart cross to Fati for Barca’s equaliser. Found himself in a 3-2-3-2 formation in a fast paced and entertaining game for a side that is seeing its best players return. AFP

Sergio Busquets 7 Dispossessed by Benzema which led to Madrid’s opener. Most of the play from a young side full of character went through him. Beautiful ball forward towards Fati on 89 as Barca pushed for a winner. Shot low after 100 minutes. He’s never scored in all those clasicos. Reuters

Frenkie De Jong 6 Recovered to start the game and his side kept the ball well. AFP

Gavi 6 Sent off for two yellows at the weekend, which cost his team. Still aggressive, but oh so gifted in a very open game where both sides attacked. AFP

Ferran Torres 6 Barca debut for the new signing and his first match since October. Started on left of a front three. Yellow card. Did ok, didn’t look out of place after injury. Brought off at half time. AFP

Ousmane Dembele 8 Barca’s best player in the first half. Promising early movement on the left and worked hard in coming back. Crossed for De Jong’s equaliser and almost had a breakthrough for a winner. Chance in extra time, too. AFP

Luuk de Jong 7 Derided, but in form and fine in the air, winning two headers from crosses in the first half. Then equalised – though he knew little about it – after 43. Third goal in as many games. Reuters

SUBS: Pedri 7 On at half time for F De Jong for only his fourth game of the season (he was near ever present last term) and first since September. Immediate reverse pass towards Dembele showed his vision. Then he struck a low shot wide of the post. He’s been missed. He’s also more muscular. AP

Abde Ezzalzouli 5 On at half time for Torres. Covered well for Alves. Should have done better than to head wide three minutes into extra time. AFP

Ansu Fati 8 On for Luuk de Jong after 63 and played as a false nine. Rose perfectly between Madrid’s central defenders to head in Barca’s second for his first goal of the season. Such a talent and still a teenager. AFP

Memphis Depay 6 On for Gavi after 78. A brave substitution by Xavi who put more attackers in an already attacking line up. AFP

Nico 6 On for Alves after 78 with instructions to attack. Couldn’t prevent Madrid recording a fifth successive win over their great rivals. Ferran Jutgla On for Abde after 109 minutes, the former Espanyol B and Barca B player came on as Xavi wanted to get back into the game. Went central up front. AP

READ MADRID RATINGS: Thibaut Courtois 7 Couldn’t do much about the goals conceded but stood up well to Barcelona efforts from range. Quick to react to dangerous situations. AFP

Ferland Mendy 8 Showed confidence on the left flank and wasn’t afraid to run at Dani Alves - and that was crucial in the second goal: The 26-year-old burst past his man and picked the right pass which eventually led to Benzema sending Real Madrid into the lead. Looked assured at the back. AFP

Nacho 5 Nacho was too disorganised when defending crosses and had to do better commanding the backline as a more experienced star in the side. AFP

Eder Militao 5 It’s not clear who Militao was marking for either of Barcelona’s equalisers. The centre-back looked lost for both goals, and while he was reliable defending 1v1, he looked troubled by balls into the box. AP

Dani Carvajal 7 Strong in the tackle at right-back and gave an impressive account of himself with a difficult task against Ousmane Dembele and Ansu Fati. Barcelona’s tricky wingers tried to get past Carvajal, but they didn't find much success. AP

Casemiro 7 Played a good part in the third goal and that capped off a solid performance from the Brazilian, who anchored the middle of the park well and was strong in the challenge. AP

Toni Kroos 7 Quickly transitioned play to spread the ball to Real Madrid’s wingers and showed some neat patterns of play with first time passes to cut through the lines. AFP

Luka Modric 7 Controlled the game from midfield and rarely put a pass wrong, working tirelessly to help his side out in defence. AP

Vinicius Jr 8 The Brazilian’s pace and trickery caused problems for Barcelona all game, and that was no different with the opening goal as he timed his run to perfection and finished emphatically. AFP

Karim Benzema 9 Good overall forward play and made no mistake with his calm finish that came moments after he had struck the post. Picked up an assist for Vinicius Jr’s opening goal. AFP

Marco Asensio 6 A quieter display than usual from Asensio who did have some opportunities of promise but he never made the most of them. Eventually substituted in the 68th minute for Rodrygo. AFP

SUBS: Rodrygo (Asensio, 68) 7 Showed excellent composure on the break, utilising his pace before picking out Valverde who finished to put Real Madrid into the lead for the third time. Looked certain to score in the final seconds but got the finish all wrong. AP

Federico Valverde (Modric, 83) 8 Injected energy into the midfield and produced a cool finish to reinstate Real's lead. Reuters

Lucas Vazquez (Carvajal 91) 7 On for Carvajal for extra time and defended well, not fooled by Ansu Fati who looked to dive in an attempt to win a penalty. AFP

Eduardo Camavinga (Vinicius Jr 110) N/A Got the pass all wrong with the chance to seal the game in the 116th minute. AFP

Dembele has been linked with a host of clubs, including Premier League sides Manchester United, Liverpool and Saudi-backed Newcastle United.

“He wants to stay but it has not been agreed so we have to make a decision as a club and that is either to renew or find an exit,” said Xavi, who took over at Camp Nou in November.

“It's a shame. He has played every possible minute since I have been coach. It is not an easy or pleasant situation, but the interests of the club are paramount.”

Dembele has struggled with injuries during his spell in Spain, making 87 La Liga appearances in four-and-a-half seasons, scoring 18 goals. He has been capped 27 times by France scoring four goals.