Borussia Dortmund faces tough decisions in the transfer window. Even after the sale of Donyell Malen, no significant changes are on the horizon.
Dortmund started the new year with a defeat against Bayer Leverkusen and find themselves under considerable pressure ahead of their match against Holstein Kiel on Tuesday. Despite staff shortages, the club opted not to retain Donyell Malen.
The Dutchman was granted permission on Monday to negotiate with another club. It could well be that Malen’s move to Aston Villa will be finalized by the time BVB fight for points at the Förde side in the evening. Given that the striker has struggled to provide consistent performances for three and a half years and is considered a lone wolf, Dortmund are happy to accept the transfer fee of 25-30 million euros from England.
Such income was not really expected during previous transfer periods. However, this does not put the BVB in a position to seek immediate reinforcements. Instead, the focus turns again to Chelsea’s ‘bargain bin’.
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Currently, there is a lot of joking among club insiders about how much one would like to be a BVB scout. Dortmund appear to only sign players with Bundesliga experience (preferably Dortmund) or those who have failed to establish themselves at the big English clubs. In January 2024, Ian Maatsen from Chelsea and Jadon Sancho from Manchester United were signed on loan.
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This duo performed well but could not be retained beyond the season. It’s debatable whether the players currently under discussion can have a similar impact: Carney Chukwuemeka, a midfielder, has accumulated less than 1,000 minutes of playing time at Chelsea in two and a half years. Renato Veiga, a versatile defender, has exceeded that threshold this season.
The Portuguese fits the profile often mocked around BVB: he plays a minor role at Chelsea but has past experience in the Bundesliga. During his loan move to FC Augsburg in 2023, he failed to leave a lasting impression.
Both players are considered very talented in the industry. Not being able to break into Chelsea’s overloaded squad, which seems to be teeming with new talent, is not a great shame. Nonetheless, the question remains why such players even join the Blues and what that says about their priorities. The transfers of Chukwuemeka and Veiga will hardly arouse enthusiasm in Dortmund.
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This is even more true when you consider the conditions: despite the millions coming from Malen, BVB can presumably only afford loans. Whether Chukwuemeka and Veiga can be kept this summer remains uncertain, regardless of whether buy options exist. For the moment, Dortmund would once again crudely cover their own mismanagement with a bandage.
Last season’s Champions League runners-up cannot compete financially with the sixth-placed team in last season’s Premier League. What this says about modern football is a separate question. For BVB, it is already a question of saving its minimum objective of qualifying for the Champions League.
Whether two little-used Chelsea talents will make the crucial difference is certainly debatable. On the other hand, the personnel situation at BVB is often so tense that adding two new full-fledged professionals to the squad would be beneficial.
