After silencing the critics: Dembélé sends a message to Enrique

Ousmane Dembélé answered his critics in the most practical way possible, and he did it in his side's Champions League opener against Slovan Bratislava.

Two goals, two assists and a chorus of praise. Dembélé silenced the doubters in a 6-1 rout, even after Luis Enrique withdrew him on 64 minutes.

His season had been stop-start until Wednesday night. He came off in the first half against Rennes, missed the Lille match, and managed only twenty minutes against Monaco.

Against Slovan Bratislava, he blew away those early doubts. The opposition were hardly among the best in the competition, but Dembélé still showed the drive that has been missing, roaming the pitch, swapping positions, scoring twice, spurning a few chances and teeing up two goals for Ferran Torres.

Speaking to "Canal+" after the match, Ousmane had a message for his coach Luis Enrique: "Definitely. After a somewhat difficult start where I did not play much... I only played 20 or 45 minutes, it was not easy to come back. Today, I am happy, I have enough energy to play 60 minutes. We had to win because we started the season badly, and we needed a strong start in the Champions League."

"We are happy, and I am happy with my performance too," he continued. "We also have to climb up the league standings, we have to keep going."

Asked about his state of mind while he waits on a contract extension, he added: "Well, when I am on the pitch, I do not think about that (extending my contract). I needed to regain my fitness after the World Cup and a short break. I feel I am getting better all the time. I hope to get more playing time to recover my rhythm. And likewise with the national team."

You can discuss the topics and news in greater depth on the "Kooora" forums.

"Scoring, creating goals, and winning, everything I love about football," he went on. "Our start was poor, against Lens and in the league too, we struggled. It was a wonderful evening, we have to continue in this way, and to be more ambitious."

"We have won the Champions League twice, and every team wants to beat us," Dembélé added. "The new players also need to learn quickly. We want to win many matches and titles."

Click here to read article