Transfer done: BVB win race for sought-after wonderkid | OneFootball

A 16-year-old defensive talent is joining Borussia Dortmund. BVB have officially confirmed the signing of a Croatian wonderkid.

Borussia Dortmund have signed another highly promising talent. BVB have officially confirmed the transfer of Liam Claude Kanté. The 16-year-old centre-back joins Dortmund from Croatian club NK Lokomotiva Zagreb and is regarded as one of the biggest defensive talents of his age group.

With this signing, BVB are consistently continuing down their chosen path of tying young players with great development potential to the club at an early stage. Kanté is initially expected to gain match practice with the U19s and gradually adapt to German football there. In the long term, however, those in charge believe he can make the step up to the professional squad.

Thomas Broich, sporting director of the youth academy, emphasised: “Liam is a defender with a very good feel for the game — he is strong in challenges and has the composure needed on the ball. We are convinced that he will take the next big step with us.”

Transfer confirmed: BVB snap up Liam Claude Kanté

The Croatian U16 international, who is also eligible to play for France, has drawn attention in recent months with a string of strong performances. His game intelligence, positioning and physical presence in particular are rated highly. In addition, the left-footer impresses with calm build-up play and precise long passes, which is why he is considered a modern centre-back.

Photo: IMAGO

The transfer is also notable because, according to information from transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, Borussia Dortmund under sporting director Ole Book managed to beat prominent competition in the race for the defensive jewel. Among others, Bayern Munich, TSG Hoffenheim, RB Salzburg and several Italian clubs are said to have shown strong interest in Kanté. In the end, however, the top talent decided to join the Black and Yellows.

The signing fits perfectly with Dortmund’s philosophy of identifying top international talents early and developing them in a targeted way. In recent years, BVB have famously proven on several occasions that they can pave the way for young players into professional football — and Liam Claude Kanté is now expected to follow that career path as well.

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