Newcastle United are taking the first steps to securing Ousmane Dembele from Barcelona.

The mercurial French winger has struggled to make the grade at the Catalan giants, largely due to recurring injury issues.

According to Sport, Dembele is someone Barcelona are happy to sell in January, if he refuses to sign a new contract.

Given he is out of contract in the summer, Barca would prefer to get something for Dembele, rather than lose him on a free transfer.

The source claims that Newcastle have already spoken to Dembele's agent, and the player may be ready to push for a move in January.