Ousmane Dembélé’s 2024-2025 Ligue 1 season has been a career-defining campaign, culminating in his crowning as the Ligue 1 Player of the Season at the UNFP 2025 Trophies ceremony on May 11, 2025.
The 27-year-old Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) forward, once criticized for inconsistency, transformed into a clinical finisher and a pivotal figure for both club and country, earning widespread acclaim for his technical brilliance and newfound ruthlessness in front of goal.
Dembélé’s journey to the top began with a challenging start to the season. Despite his undeniable talent, he faced scrutiny for a lack of offensive output, managing just five goals in his first 17 games across all competitions.
However, a tactical shift by PSG head coach Luis Enrique changed everything. Moving Dembélé from his usual right-wing role to a more central attacking position unlocked his potential, allowing him to exploit his ambidexterity and flair in high-danger areas.
This adjustment sparked a remarkable scoring run, with Dembélé netting 18 goals in his final 11 games of the season, including consecutive hat-tricks against VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League and Brest in Ligue 1—a historic feat for a PSG player.
In Ligue 1 alone, Dembélé appeared in 28 matches, scoring 21 goals and providing 8 assists, topping the league’s scoring charts and leading PSG’s attack.
His non-penalty expected goals (npxG) per 90 minutes reached 1.10, placing him in the 99th percentile among Ligue 1 players, while his goal involvement (goals plus assists) averaged 1.53 per 90 minutes. Standout performances included a hat-trick against Brest and a brace against AS Monaco, earning him the Ligue 1 Player of the Month award for January 2025.
His 13 goals in Ligue 1 since the turn of the year underscored his unstoppable form, with posts on X describing him as “levels above the rest” and the league’s highest-rated player with an average WhoScored rating of 7.87.
Beyond domestic dominance, Dembélé shone in the UEFA Champions League, contributing 8 goals and 4 assists. Key moments included a goal against former club Barcelona in a 4–1 quarter-final win, a hat-trick against Stuttgart, and decisive strikes against Liverpool and Arsenal, helping PSG advance toward their first-ever Champions League title. His performances earned him multiple Player of the Match awards and fueled speculation about a potential Ballon d’Or candidacy.
Critics who once labeled him injury-prone or wasteful were silenced as he played 1532 Ligue 1 minutes with only one yellow card and no significant injuries. His ability to combine technical wizardry—evidenced by 845 dribbles and 73 passes into the box—with clinical finishing marked his arrival as a complete forward.
The UNFP ceremony, held at the Gabriel Pavilion, saw Dembélé succeed Kylian Mbappé as Ligue 1’s best player, a symbolic passing of the torch. French football outlet L’Équipe had already rated him the league’s best player mid-season with a 6.24 average, foreshadowing his eventual triumph.
Dembélé’s story is one of perseverance and redemption. From his €135 million move to Barcelona in 2017 as Neymar’s replacement to his €50 million transfer to PSG in 2023, he faced immense pressure and injury setbacks.
Yet, under Enrique’s guidance, he finally fulfilled the promise that saw him burst onto the scene at Rennes a decade earlier. As PSG prepare to face Inter Milan in the Champions League semi-finals, Dembélé’s form suggests he could lead them to European glory, cementing his legacy as one of France’s brightest stars.
