Dortmund can’t afford to fight to keep Bellingham

Jude Bellingham will be able to decide his own future as Borussia Dortmund do not have the financial strength to put up “a big fight” to keep him, CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has acknowledged. Bellingham is regarded as one of the best young players in world football and has shone this season, scoring nine goals and adding three assists in 22 appearances across all competitions. The England midfielder is now set to play a key part in his country’s World Cup campaign, where eyes from European’s elite are likely to be cast in the hunt for new additions.

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There has been no shortage of interest in Bellingham already, with Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all reported as potential suitors, and Watzke has made it clear that Dortmund will not stand in the way of a sale. “We will hold talks when the World Cup is over. We will ask him if he wants to stay or leave,” he told Bild. “But when big European clubs come, we can’t afford a big fight financially.”

Dortmund off the pace

Dortmund head into the World Cup break in disappointing form, sitting sixth in the Bundesliga and already nine points behind Bayern Munich at the summit. Edin Terzic has come under pressure as a result, with Dortmund six points worse off than they were at the same stage last season under Marco Rose, who now occupies second place in the standings with RB Leipzig.

But Watzke is not thinking of another change, explaining: “Marco Rose is a great coach, but we decided together to go our separate ways because some things stood in the way and somehow he never really arrived. Something was there that wasn’t right. We don’t know for sure ourselves. We are still in the Champions League, in the DFB Pokal, too. Edin is a guy who knows and loves the club, but he has a team that is still subject to too much fluctuation. But Terzic is doing a great job, so I’m sure we’ll enjoy him for a long time to come. Terzic is highly regarded at BVB as a whole. I hear from everyone involved how meticulously he works. We will see great things from him. Jürgen Klopp fully committed himself to the club for seven years. I see parallels to Edin, who is also totally focused on the club. I also see that with Sebastian Kehl [BVB sporting director] and so it is with me.”