Far beyond the coal pot, Borussia Dortmund has built a reputation for being an ideal place for top talent who just need the finishing touches and get that at Signal Iduna Park. Ousmane Dembélé, Jadon Sancho or now Jude Bellingham are representative of this BVB brand core. The core competence of Borussia not only helps to generate horrendous transfer fees. The desired side effect is that this also attracts new talent who are thirsting for exactly this development. Latest example: Julien Duranville.
Transfer on the home straight
The only 16-year-old talent, who, according to media reports, even made it into the first 50-man squad of the Belgian national team for the World Cup in Qatar thanks to strong performances for RSC Anderlecht, should still serve in Dortmund by the deadline day in a week . According to reports, the parties are almost in agreement. According to the Belgian newspaper ‘Het Nieuwsblad’, the transfer fee is leveling off at ten million euros, and the amount and structure of any bonus and resale agreements are still being discussed.
The transfer is by no means a quick shot. Even before the first rumors arose at the end of May last year that FC Bayern wanted to bring the youngster on board, the transfer to BVB had long been in preparation. Finally, Dortmund’s interest also materialized in an official summer offer of ten million euros, which the RSC rejected.
The Munich record champion, on the other hand, was said to be willing to invest 15 million euros. According to reports, the winger was used more as a bargaining chip in the talks about Joshua Zirkzee. The player on loan at the time didn’t end up in Anderlecht permanently and today he’s rather unlucky for FC Bologna. And Duranville stayed with the Brussels suburb club for the time being.
Parallels to Dembélé
Even then, however, the talent is said to have flirted with a transfer to Dortmund. The scouts of the black and yellow – at least those who were already active for BVB in 2016 – the analysis of the Belgian will probably have seemed like a permanent déjà vu. Reminds Duranville, who gives the recently deceased Pelé as a great role model, in his style of play and system astonishingly strongly of the Dembélé mentioned above. The Belgian is also a lightning-fast winger with great dribbling skills, which has earned him the nickname ‘De Bliksem’ (the lightning bolt).
And similar to today’s Barça superstar, the Belgian teenager doesn’t just have his supposedly weaker foot for standing – on the contrary. When he dribbles, hooks, and then races back down the line, it’s hardly noticeable that Duranville is right-footed from home. At the RSC, for which he made his professional debut in May at the tender age of 16 years and 17 days, he twirls on both wings. It is striking that the Belgian U19 international has a surprisingly good sense of when to seek a finish and when to play the pass.
muscular problems
A look at the previous statistics does not only cause one or the other worry line on the forehead of the Dortmund squad planners. Duranville can already look back on an eventful injury history. The talent seems particularly vulnerable when it comes to muscles. BVB wanted to pay more attention to the injury problems of potential newcomers. The muscle injuries – so far rather minor – are probably also a reason why the talent is coming onto the market for a rather manageable ten million euros.
Another is that the contract expires in 2024 and an extension is not an issue. And the Mauves et Blancs know full well that the price keeps falling from transfer window to transfer window. In addition, the RSC still has transfer requests in winter and can use the millions. The bottom line is that the risk for BVB is manageable. However, as in the case of Dembélé, the later yield could be gigantic. De Bliksem certainly has what it takes to electrify the crowds at Signal Iduna Park with his spectacular style of play.
