Ousmane Dembele a ‘better player than Neymar,’ says Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu ahead of Manchester United match

Barcelona star Ousmane Dembele is now a better player than Neymar, according to the man who signed him, Josep Bartomeu.

The Barca president oversaw Neymar's £198m transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017, with Dembele arriving from Borussia Dortmund shortly afterwards for £135m and Philippe Coutinho joining the club from Liverpool in January 2018 for £142m.

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Both players are adequate replacements, says Bartomeu.

"I explained that we have a project with Dembele and Coutinho with Neymar's money,' he told Spanish television channel .

"Dembele's level is better now than Neymar's, he's a much better player than Neymar and he's already adapted."

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The Camp Nou supremo was also full of praise for former Liverpool star Coutinho, who has been linked with a move away from Barcelona recently.

However, it appears the 26-year-old Brazil international is going nowhere.

"Coutinho is a great player, excellent, he's getting better and better," he added.

"It's not easy to play at Barca - he was here six months last season and he's complete now. He has the confidence of [Ernesto Valverde] the coach. He's a global player and we expect a lot. from him.

"He will continue at Barca. He's different and Barca needs different players."

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On Tuesday night, live on talkSPORT at 8pm, LaLiga's leaders host Manchester United in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

Lionel Messi is fit to play, having suffered a facial injury in the first leg in a clash with Chris Smalling. The forward was rested for Saturday's goalless draw at bottom club, Huesca.

Barca lead 1-0 from the first leg and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will use United's dramatic turnaround in the previous round against PSG as inspiration.

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"It will have helped us as a team," the Norwegian said. "We know we can turn things around.

"Barca here at the Nou Camp is a difficult prospect but that night will live with the players. It was not that long ago and we are one goal better off [than we were then]."

Solskjaer confirmed forward Alexis Sanchez and midfielder Nemanja Matic are both available for the tie after recovering from injuries.

Sanchez, who played 141 times for Barca in a three-year spell, has been out for six weeks with a knee injury while Matic has missed the past three games.