'He'll make us so much money' - Dortmund sporting director on Bellingham future

Tom Weber

• Updated: 15 May 2023 14:03 BST
• 3 min read

Borussia Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl has spoken about the rumours surrounding Jude Bellingham's future amid links to Real Madrid and Manchester City.

The Bellingham transfer saga is still dragging on with Los Blancos and City now considered the clear favourites to land Europe's most sought-after teenager. Indeed, some reports claim that the 19-year-old has already agreed personal terms with Real Madrid.

Despite his tender years, the English midfielder is already a world-class player with his only obvious shortcoming being an occasional lack of positional discipline. With two years still left on his Dortmund contract, the expectation is that he will make the Black and Yellow north of €100 million.

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This was echoed by Sebastian Kehl in a recent interview with Sky90, in which he claimed that the potential sale of Bellingham would earn Dortmund 'a lot of money.'

What did Kehl say?

"There is no release clause and his contract still runs for two years," Dortmund's sporting director said. "Therefore, he is of a certain value to us, and this would need to be matched [in the event of a sale]."

"There were times when I thought that he would leave. Later, I had the feeling that he would definitely stay. The race for him will certainly resume at the end of the season."

"I don't think we are without a chance [of keeping him]. I believe that if we were to become champions of Germany this year, it would show that we are very ambitious..."

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"Should he go, he will certainly make us so much money that we could say: This is a scenario we have repeatedly found solutions for in the past. Therefore, we are very relaxed. By the same token, however, we know that it is impossible to replace Jude Bellingham like for like."

"He is an unbelievable player with his shape and potential. Replacing that won't be possible even for us - and even with a lot of money."