'Mental strength' is key at Barcelona

The forward has had some big shoes to fill as Neymar's replacement at Barcelona, following his move to Paris Saint-Germain. Dembele moved from Borussia Dortmund to Barca las summer in a £96 million deal.

Dembele arrived with an impressive reputation, however he struggled initially at the Catalan club following a serious injury to his thigh that left him unable to play for three months.

Former Barcelona midfielder Xavi has said that the young Frenchman ''will have to learn to think faster, in a few thousandths of a second. This is where we will see if he has the mentality. He must say to himself ''I am a Barca player''. You have to be mentally strong, to have conviction.''

Dembele scored his first goal for the club against Chelsea in a 3-0 victory against the English side. Despite his stellar performances as of late, Xavi warned that time is important in the making of an excellent player, he said ''there are average players who spent 15 years at Barca, because they had character. And there are some excellent players who did not do anything because they couldn't handle pressure.'' He added that ''It is like Dembele is passing a Master's degree right now because not everyone can play for this club.'' 

Xavi also stressed the importance of the right mind-set, ''mental strength is what stabilises the performance. That's what makes you stronger.'' Only time will tell if Dembele has what it takes to thrive at Barca.