Revealed: Why RB Leipzig passed on BVB’s new signing Silva | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund secured Fabio Silva in the summer, despite RB Leipzig also being interested. Now it has been revealed why Leipzig decided against signing the striker.

Last summer, Fabio Silva was close to signing with RB Leipzig - in the end, however, the Portuguese player transferred from Wolverhampton Wanderers to Borussia Dortmund for 22.5 million euros. Now it becomes clear why Leipzig lost out on the transfer.

The Red Bulls were looking for a successor to Benjamin Sesko, who had transferred to Manchester United for 85 million euros. Sporting director Marcel Schäfer had two candidates in sight according to a report by Bild: Brazilian Rômulo from Göztepe and Fabio Silva. While Rômulo was considered the preferred choice from the beginning, the Portuguese was only "Plan B" for Leipzig.

Initially, Leipzig seriously considered Silva, as the negotiations with Göztepe for Rômulo were dragging on. But when there was movement in the Rômulo deal in early August, the Saxons decided to consistently focus on the Brazilian. According to Bild, the package of transfer fee and salary for Silva would have been significantly more expensive than for Rômulo, who was signed for 20 million euros.

BVB newcomer Silva is to relieve Guirassy

The transfer of Rômulo was even officially completed two weeks before Silva's move. In addition, another striker, Lois Openda, left Leipzig, making Rômulo a permanent part of the offense.

This gave Dortmund the opportunity to sign Silva. Although he initially had to take a break due to a groin injury, which was only discovered during the medical check, he is now fit again. Coach Niko Kovac plans to use Silva more in the coming weeks to relieve top scorer Serhou Guirassy and further develop the Portuguese. In his first Bundesliga and Champions League appearances, Silva usually only came on towards the end of the game.

Leipzig's decision to pass on the 23-year-old was therefore less of a defeat in the transfer fee poker, but a strategic choice. With Rômulo, the Saxons have been able to sign their preferred solution in attack - both in sporting and financial terms. Fabio Silva, on the other hand, gets the opportunity at BVB to play in the Champions League and continue to develop at the highest level.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.