The next big money summer transfer window battle will apparently center around a player from, surprise, surprise, Borussia Dortmund. Jude Bellingham, BVB midfielder, is wanted by all the big boys.
According to Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans Watzke, Bellingham, 19, can leave the club next summer if he so wishes. Watzke added that talks with Bellingham and his camp will begin once the World Cup is over.
“We will hold talks now, as soon as [the World Cup in] Qatar is over, and then we’ll have a fundamental talk about what he would like,” Watzke said.
“He just needs to tell us if he’d like to stay or if he’d like to go. In both cases we’ll talk about it very pleasantly and reasonably together. In general, we can imagine that he’d stay with us, but we can’t behave as if this topic wasn’t on the table.
Some reports claims that the inevitable bidding war could command a transfer fee in the region of โฌ100 million.
While Dortmund defied the big money clubs, and held on to Bellingham this summer, Watzke seems to be admitting defeat now. He made it clear that the club just cannot compete with Europe’s richest clubs when it comes to player salaries.
And thus, they will not obstruct him if he seeks a bigger pay day.
“If he says ‘I’d like to do something else,’ then the really big [clubs] in Europe will be there and we can’t afford to fight financially,” Watzke added.
Paul M. Banks is the Owner/Manager of The Sports Bankย andย author of โTransatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,โ as well asย โNo, I Canโt Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.โ
He has regularly contributed to WGN News, Sports Illustratedย and theย Chicago Tribune,ย and heย co-hosts theย After Extra Time podcast. Follow the website on Instagram.
