Barcelona fans have been left a little underwhelmed by Ousmane Dembele since his arrival.

Supporters must have been salivating when they watched compilations of Dembele at Borussia Dortmund and the Blaugrana paid big money to ensure they got their man last year.

And although nobody was expecting to Dembele to perform like a world-beater from day one, the Frenchman is still struggling to adapt after over 12 months at the club.

It must be said, Dembele has made progress during his second season and the dramatic equaliser against Atletico Madrid will do his confidence the world of good.

With seven goals in 16 appearances, he has already improved upon his tally from the 2017-18 campaign but has yet to consistently impress manager Ernesto Valverde.

Questions raised about Dembele

Seven of his outings have come from the bench, Rafinha has been favoured during key league matches and there's even speculation that he could leave the club.

That's not to mention speculation that Dembele is leading an unprofessional lifestyle away from the pitch with concerns about his diet and the amount of time he's spending at home.

Luis Suarez effectively confirmed these rumours earlier in the month by noting: "I think he needs to focus more, and be more serious on some points.”

Journalist thinks Messi & Suarez should be helping

It's for these reasons that Dembele has become such a major talking point in the Spanish press and, on the topic of Suarez, an interesting article has emerged in Sport this week.

Journalist Toni Juanmarti has taken a unique angle on the Dembele situation and rather interestingly, has a message for Suarez and Lionel Messi on the topic.

"From the outside looking in you get the impression the whole dressing room is on one side and Dembele on the other," Juanmarti wrote.

"We also haven't seen Messi or Pique joking around with him. It's true that professionals don't have to be friends with each other to succeed, but rather work hard and search for the best for the team.

"But everything would be much easier if Messi and Luis Suarez opened the door for Dembele. They did this with Neymar who was also quite young at the time.

"This is why Samuel Umtiti is so important. He too needed time to adapt at the club. But just like you would at university or with your Sunday League squad members, those team dinners allow you to stop being just a player and allow others to get to know the person."

It's certainly an intriguing take.

And surely an arm around the shoulder from either Messi, Suarez or Pique would be huge for Dembele when so much criticism is being fired in his direction.

Of course, it's difficult to know exactly what is going on behind the scenes but it's clear that more needs to be done to integrate Dembele at Barcelona.

There is no doubt that the 21-year-old has the ability on the pitch, there just needs to be a few alterations off it.

Do you think Dembele will succeed at Barcelona? Have your say in the comments section below.