La Liga giants Barcelona turned down the opportunity to sign Celtic's youth star Karamoko Dembele over fears of punishment from FIFA.
According to the Mirror, the Catalan side rejected the chance to sign the 13-year-old over fears that the international governing body of football could fine them heavily for signing an underage player. Barcelona had previously been keen to sign Dembele, having convinced him his future was away from Celtic and Scotland.
Barcelona have reportedly scouted Dembele at various youth tournaments and been impressed with his displays, but are now unlikely to make any further enquiries regarding the youngster, given their recent past with transfers and the subsequent punishments dished out to them by FIFA.
Back in 2014, Luis Enrique's side were given a 14-month transfer ban for breaking rules based on signing international players under the age of 18, and were also fined £305,000.
Dembele came to public attention in early October after appearing for Celtic's U20 at the tender age of 13, appearing as a sub due to many of Celtic's youth players being away on international duty. The Scottish club have received much criticism for their decision to play Dembele alongside players up to seven years his senior, with many scepticshighlighting the physical and mental damage of being forced through development squads at such a young age could have on a player.
Dembele has since played for the Scotland U16 side, and also travelled to England to train with the U15 side. He is also eligible to play for the Ivory Coast.