Nonsense. Dembele had a release clause in his contract, we could have signed him at the start of the window and let him bed in with a pre-season but didn't. We only signed him after he bossed a game at Old Trafford for Fulham.
The more I think about it, the less likely I can see this Konoplyanka deal happening. If they were in genuine discussions with us, why come public with it? There's no reason to do so. The only benefit would be to hurry up other bidders. And even if you think he can put past Vertonghen's antics in the Europa League (especially if Vertonghen leaves this summer), the only way he'd join us is if we get to the end of the summer and nobody in the Champions League has bid (ala Eriksen). There's no way he'd sign a contract with us now given the state we're in and the lack of certainty about who our manager is going to be.
This reminds me of this -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17025344 - at least back then we were in the top 3, in the title race, seemingly dead certs for a Champions League group stage spot and playing attractive, attacking football with a good young squad. This link just seems ridiculous the more I think about it.