Ousmane Dembélé, 27-year-old striker for Paris Saint-Germain and the French national team, won the title of Ligue 1’s best player at the UNFP 2024-2025 Trophées ceremony. He then appeared before the press. The occasion provided an opportunity to discuss the award, his progress in terms of efficiency and the Champions League final against Inter Milan on May 31.
Dembélé “thanks to my team-mates and the staff.”
A word about the Best Player award?
It makes me very happy. I think I had a great season. But as I’ve said, when I repeat it throughout the season, it’s thanks to my team-mates and the staff who put me in the best position to be able to perform. And now I’m trying to keep on working.
I knew, as I was often told, that I had to score goals. And this year, as I said at the start of the season, I remember a match we played against Belgium, that I was going to score goals this year. I’m delighted. Hopefully, with three weeks to go, I’ll still be scoring goals.
Dembélé “I think they deserve it.”
A new method?
My position, I’m a lot closer to goal and I’m a lot more lucid in front of goal thanks to this number 9 position. After that, I train as usual. I try to improve every day.
Have you spoken to Marcus Thuram (Inter Milan and France forward) about the Final?
Marcus Thuram is the person I talk to the most, and we talk every day, but we haven’t yet talked about the final (smile).
How do you feel about the LDC final?
It’s a final. There are only 2 or 3 members of the Paris Saint-Germain squad who have played in a Champions League final, it’s a very young group, but as we said, we’re hungry, we want to make history.
I think that for Paris Saint-Germain, now is the time to win this Champions League. In the club, the president, everything they’ve done for Paris Saint-Germain, I think they deserve it. And it’s 95 minutes, maybe even 120 minutes to be able to bring this trophy back to Paris.
Dembélé “I don’t know if there’s a team hungrier than us.”
How do you see the final?
It’s a final, anything can happen, but as the coach has told us repeatedly, whatever happens, whatever the opponent, we’re not going to change the way we play. We’re going to do what we do best, and then we’re really going to try to be very aggressive. I don’t know if there’s a team hungrier than us to bring this trophy to Paris, but we’re going to give it our all on the 31st.
