According to the Daily Sports Newspaper, if Dembele does not renew his contract, then Barca will not let him play for the rest of his contract.
Barca had hoped to sell Dembele this summer to cut salary payouts, and the club had already made some progress on a three-way deal, but Dembele was injured in the European Cup and will be out for 4 months, resulting in the aborted plan.
Dembele's contract expires less than a year later, meaning he will be able to reach out to other clubs in January and move freely in June next year.
Barca don't want to see that happen, after all, Barca spent 105 million euros + 42 million floats to sign the France international. The club are now struggling to find a pay cut extension agreement with the player, and if Dembele is unwilling to renew his contract, then Barca will not let him play after he returns from injury.
(Goblin Killer)