Why Werner is finally a Dortmund transfer target
Robin Bairner
- 2 Mar 2022 10:27 GMT
- 3 min read
Chelsea striker Timo Werner may previously have thrived in the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig, but since making a €50 million move in 2020 he has flopped at Stamford Bridge.
Big things were expected of the Germany international forward when he moved to England, but while there have been fleeting glimpses of what he can do, he has become known or his failures in front of goal.
Depleted of confidence, Werner has become increasingly peripheral at Chelsea and has long been linked with a switch away that could reinvigorate his career.
Borussia Dortmund may just provide him with that chance, according to Sport Bild.
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BVB, after all, are likely to be in the market for a new attacker in the summer. Erling Haaland is virtually certain to leave because of a €75m release clause in his contract that comes into effect this summer.
This is a problem that Dortmund have known was looming for months, yet Werner has rarely been seen as one of their first options, despite it being clear that Chelsea could be willing vendors.
Why, then, have the German side had this sudden interest?
Dortmund see value in Werner
The answer lies in Austria, where their No.1 target Karim Adeyemi has been valued at €42m by Red Bull Salzburg. Put into context, that is approximately twice what Dortmund paid Salzburg to sign Haaland in January 2020.
Dortmund do not feel that represents value for money given 20-year-old Adeyemi’s rather scant experience at the top level.
Conversely, Werner is liable to be available for a knockdown price as Chelsea seek to get him off their books, which makes him a more attractive alternative.
Certainly, if they could get him back to his best level, he could prove to be a bargain. There is not nearly so much sell-on potential in Adeyemi at his current valuation – and Dortmund have shown that to be an important consideration when conducting their transfer business in recent years.
Unless Salzburg’s valuation of Adeyemi drops, expect Werner to be increasingly linked with a transfer to Dortmund from Chelsea in the coming weeks.
