Forgotten wonderkid once dubbed ‘next Lionel Messi’ seals return to English football after Ligue 1 spell
FORGOTTEN wonderkid Karamoko Dembele will return to English football after signing with Queens Park Rangers.
The 21-year-old once received one of the most promising tributes a young footballer could get.
Dembele who was compared to Lionel Messi as a youngster has agreed on a deal worth £2.5million to Championship side QPR.
Transfer reporter Fabrizio Romano confirmed on Saturday that the winger “will travel to the UK this weekend to complete medical tests.”
The London-born ace spent last season on loan from French club Brest to League One Blackpool and became a key man in the squad.
Dembele’s eight goals and 14 assists throughout the season contributed significantly to Blackpool’s EFL League One promotion push and was awarded Players “Player of the Season”.
The former Celtic star joined the Scottish giants at the age of 10 and shot to fame in 2016 when then-manager Brendan Rodgers called him into the senior squad.
He then made his debut for Celtic’s under-20 development team at the age of 13.
After playing eight matches and scoring once for Celtic at a professional level his contract ended at the club and he signed for Brest in July 2022 on a free transfer and a four-year deal.
French outlet L’Equipe regarded him as one of six “outstanding young players set to revolutionise the game”.
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And during his loan at Blackpool last term boss Neil Critchley called him “a brilliant footballer” and “exciting, something different in this league”.
In his verdict to the Blackpool Gazette, Critchley added: “He’s really courageous, he takes the ball into any area of the pitch and backs himself – he’s got real bravery.”
QPR finished last season on the brink of relegation in 18th but victories in their last three games against Preston North End, Leeds and Coventry save their place in the second division.
Dembele won’t be able to play in Marti Cifuentes’ side’s opening match of the season, which has already begun as QPR take on West Brom
And the star will hope to feature in their next clash which takes place on August 17 against Sheffield United.
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