The $27.5 Million Signing Analyzed

Borussia Dortmund has signed SC
SC
Freiburg defender Nico Schlotterbeck. The club made the transfer official on Monday. Schlotterbeck will join the Black and Yellows for a deal that could be as high as $27.5 million per Transfermarkt. The 22-year-old has signed a five-year contract.

Schlotterbeck has been one of the most highly sought after players in Germany. The national team player has scored four goals and one assist in 30 games for SC Freiburg this season and was called up by Germany coach Hansi Flick. Freiburg is expected to sign Matthias Ginter from Borussia Mönchengladbach as his replacement.

“Nico Schlotterbeck is a young German international who has made great progress. His profile fits BVB
VB
perfectly,” Borussia Dortmund’s outgoing sporting director Michael Zorc said in a club statement.

“Nico’s path reminds me of my own because I also came to BVB from Freiburg as a young national player of his age,” Sebastian Kehl, who will replace Zorc as the club’s new sporting director next season, said in a club statement. “I hope that Dortmund will become a new home for him, just like it was for me then. Nico has huge potential. He didn’t choose the best offer from among the many interested clubs, but deliberately chose BVB in order to further develop his sporting skills here. We are very pleased that we could convince Nico of our path and that he made a clear commitment to Borussia Dortmund by signing a long-term contract.”

Schlotterbeck’s addition to Borussia Dortmund marks the second time the Black and Yellows have beaten Bayern Munich to a signing for the upcoming transfer window. Schlotterbeck was also a transfer target for the Rekordmeister, but Bayern started negotiations at a time when the 22-year-old had already verbally agreed to join Dortmund instead.

The center-back is now expected to form a pairing with Niklas Süle. Dortmund, of course, poached Süle from Bayern Munich, a deal that was already one of the biggest transfer surprises of the upcoming Bundesliga transfer window.

Schlotterbeck is Dortmund’s third German national team player to join this offseason. The other two are Karim Adeyemi—he too received a last minute offer from the Rekordmeister—from RB Salzburg and Süle, as mentioned earlier.

It is a significant course correction by Dortmund. Traditionally, the Black and Yellows have contributed to the German national team. But in recent years, only Marco Reus—injuries permitting—has been a regular. Mats Hummels and Mahmoud Dahoud have been the other two national team candidates, but neither has played a significant role over the last four years.

The addition of Schlotterbeck, Süle, and Adeyemi, however, will not just increase Dortmund’s presence with the German national team. The center-back pairing, in particular, will also allow head coach Marco Rose to implement his favorite style more vehemently.

Both Süle and Schlotterbeck are gifted with the ball and have the speed to play a high defensive line. Although Manuel Akanji does have that speed, his current partner Hummels has struggled this season and very much looks like a player past his prime. Although the former’s future is somewhat in doubt—Bayern and Manchester United are interested in Akanji—the Swiss center-back, when fit, could form a high-speed three-back line with the two additions.

When fit, Dortmund’s backline might now be the most formidable in the Bundesliga, especially as Bayern seems to struggle on the transfer market. There are still question marks, however. Dortmund still lack a proper central midfielder, and they need full-backs that can compliment Dortmund’s high-speed central defense.

Manuel Veth is the host of the Bundesliga Gegenpressing Podcast and the Area Manager USA at Transfermarkt. He has also been published in the Guardian, Newsweek, Howler, Pro Soccer USA, and several other outlets. Follow him on Twitter: @ManuelVeth