Dortmund Sporting Director Sebastian Kehl says club are “under no pressure” to sell Bellingham
The sporting director of the German club spoke to Kicker, insisting the player is focussed on playing for his current club.
Is this the end? Do we sound the alarms? Run for the emergency exit? Have Real Madrid finally had their wings cut off as they chase Jude Bellingham through the airwaves like a determined bumblebee? Or is Jude actually the bumblebee in his yellow and black kit? What do all of these signs mean? What do we do?
Well, the Dortmund sporting director has asked for calm, so maybe that’s a good option.
Sebastian Kehl has poured cold water on everyone’s melting faces as the pressure heats up in Madrid despite the wintery temperatures the city is experiencing. In an interview with Kicker, he spoke of how well the English midfielder is doing and how he is fully focussed on succeeding in Germany.
Dortmund Sporting Director’s comments on Jude Bellingham
“Jude has made an incredible development here”, said Kehl to Kicker, “with his way of playing football, his combativeness and commitment, he identifies a lot with Borussia Dortmund. Currently there is no pressure on the situation. Jude wants to concentrate fully on his football here, and there are no offers.”
Do we need pandemonium from these comments? Probably not. Bellingham has a contract with the club until 2025, but news has come out repeatedly that Real Madrid would like to sign him and have made the midfielder their number one target for the summer, in case you haven’t heard.
It was reported earlier in the month that Bellingham was going to sit down with Borussia Dortmund to discuss his future and that a potential transfer to the current European champions could command around €100m - plus a series of add-ons that could take his total price tag to around €140m. Dortmund signed the player for €25m in 2020, when he was still just 16.
The German club tried to renew the player’s contract but failed in doing so; a renewal would have meant a buy-out clause of €150 million, which was added in response to interest from teams such as Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, as well as Real Madrid. The Spanish club are yet to hold conversations with Dortmund, as Kehl said, but the signs are good from the player who is reportedly keen to join.
But, whatever happens, let’s watch from a safe distance, all nice and calm.
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