Ernesto Valverde dismisses concerns over lifestyle of £135m Barcelona striker Ousmane Dembele

Barcelona head coach Ernesto Valverde has insisted that he has no concerns over Ousmane Dembele, days after reports emerged that club officials were concerned about the young striker's lifestyle away from the pitch.

Dembele, 20, has had an injury-hit debut season in Spain and has been restricted to just seven La Liga appearances since completing his £135-million ($186-million) transfer from Borussia Dortmund last August.

Spanish radio station Cadena SER reported earlier this week that Barcelona officials were concerned over the striker's love for fast food and nights out in the city.

However, Valverde insisted that he harbored no such concerns after Barcelona beat Espanyol on penalties in the Catalan Super Cup.

"This question surprises me a bit," the Barca boss was quoted as saying by AS when asked about Dembele's lifestyle.

"All of the players off the field are the most professional in the world to perform on Sunday and in the case of Dembele, they use trusted people, nutritionists.

"We are happy with him and he is going to help us a lot."

Dembele spent a month on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury in January, while a separate muscle injury he picked up in September kept him sidelined for four months.

The French striker started against Espanyol but was replaced after 63 minutes.

"He tried to get involved in play and has worked on individual moves and it is useful for us," Valverde said when asked about Dembele's performance. "We hope that he translates that into La Liga games."

Barcelona hold an eight-point lead over Atletico Madrid at the top of the La Liga table. The Catalan giants will host Chelsea in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 next week.

When asked if Real Madrid were the biggest hurdle for his team to win the Champions League, Valverde said: "No. The rival to beat is Chelsea. We haven't qualified."

Barcelona hold a slender advantage in the last-16 tie against Chelsea after playing out a 1-1 draw in the first leg at Stamford Bridge.