Bundesliga January 2026 Transfer Primers | RB Leipzig | OneFootball

The next of our 18 Bundesliga transfer primers to be published here on Get German Football News covers RB Leipzig. Having already checked in with the other Bundesliga “XXL Umbruch” side, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, there’s admittedly some similar reporting to be hashed out here. Just like Leverkusen, the German Red Bulls managed to scout and spend their way back into prominence quicker than anticipated. 

Leipzig’s new additions convinced a tad more than that of their company club counterparts during the pre-season. As such, it wasn’t really a shock to see Ole Werner’s RB gel quicker than the new-look B04 project. In recent weeks, however, a raft of injuries did lead to the Saxons hitting some deep potholes. Leipzig veered off into the winter break losers of back-to-back Bundesliga fixtures. 

Leverkusen defeated them in the final league match of 2025.

RasenBallSport Leipzig

Were it not for the losses against Bayer and Union, RB could easily have win “Weihnachts-Vizemeister.

Winter Predictions Check, RB Leipzig

Predicted Table Position – 6th place

Actual Table Position – 4th place, 29 points

(9-W, 2-D, 4-L)

(+11 G-Diff)

Bundesliga play could not have possibly gotten off to a worse start with that shellacking at the hands of FC Bayern München. After being humbled by the German record champs on opening night, Werner’s charges nevertheless managed to completely turn it around with four straight league victories. A draw against Dortmund on match-day six kept the unbeaten streak alive. Three more consecutive league wins (four on-the-trot thanks to a big beatdown of regional rivals Cottbus in the Pokal) followed. Leipzig cruised through September and October on a nine-match-unbeaten run. 

Leipzig get a double crack at Bayern in the coming months thanks to the DFB-Pokal quarterfinal draw. St. Pauli and Freiburg close out the Hin-Runde once we get rolling again in January. After the first Bayern re-match at the beginning of the Rück, the soft schedule that allowed RB to roll on that September/October run repeats. In a different year, one could definitely consider this team title contenders. Alas, the sad fact remains that we simply don’t have a title race this year.  Luckily, there’s other interesting stuff to discuss. 

Autumn Transfer Assessment, RB Leipzig

Estimated Summer Transfer Balance = +€61m

Finances matter not here. That doesn’t mean that the author doesn’t need to mention (for the 4,764th time) that new superstar Yan Diomande only cost this club €1.5m. Yes, there’s really no end to the gushing over the 19-year-old Ivorian talent. Germans currently quake in their boots at the prospect of facing him in the group phase of this coming summer’s World Cup. There are plenty of other hits from this club’s front office. We’ll simply mention the flops in brief. Arthur Vermeeren, Kosta Nedeljkovic, and Max Finkgräfe turned out to be not needed. 

New Brazilian striker Romulo quickly made his contribution to Leipzig’s “rebuild/re-set”. When Romulo had to bow out with injury, fellow new summer addition Conrad Harder quickly stepped up his game and began amassing scorer points. Belgian international Johan Bakayoko’s numbers have dropped off in recent weeks, but he still qualifies as a solid recruit. Ezecheiel Banzuzi’s quietly solid Bundesliga performances mean a great deal to this team. Banzuzi’s two goals in the Pokal counted as crucial and clutch.

With right back Ridle Baku struggling with injury and Benjamin Henrich’s comeback delayed, it might be the case that Nedeljkovic’s presence via a new loan deal will pay off. Finkgräfe – assuming he can make the switch to the right – might be in line to make a contribution as well. Much falls into place at the right time on this team. A return to Champions League football via a top four finish appears a given at this point. Werner’s squad should also continue to factor into the “Vize-meister” race. 

Dead Weight Ledger and Expiring Contracts, RB Leipzig

Sporting director Marcel Schäfer did an excellent job trimming what was for a time a 36-man-roster down during the offseason. The current squad of 30 professionals still needs to be reduced. Tidiam Gomis, Vigo Gebel, and Samba Konaté should be parked elsewhere. Veteran Lukas Klostermann could still generate some cash. The latest on young French center back El Chadaille Bitshiabu makes it seem as if Schäfer does not consider the 20-year-old to be dead weight after all. The right offer might nevertheless still see Bitshiabu move. 

Dead-Weight Ledger = Max Finkgräfe (LB), El Chadaille Bitshiabu (CB), Lukas Klostermann (RB), Andrija Maksimovic (ATTM), Vigo Gebel (ATTM), Tidiam Gomis (LW), Samba Konaté (CF)

Schäfer would ostensibly like to move all four players on expiring contracts, but there are issues. Timo Werner seems content to ride out his contract. Former captain Peter Gulacsi remains Werner’s first choice keeper despite several high profile mistakes. Xaver Schlager’s days of contributing to this team aren’t totally finished and the 28-year-old might yet serve a useful purpose working alongside his enthusiastic club teammate and Austrian compatriot Christoph Baumgartner.

The matter of club veteran Kevin Kampl is different. Frankly, whatever the Slovenian international is going through remains none of our business. Schäfer actually demonstrated a significant amount of class when recently speaking to the media about Kampl’s situation. The organization Germans scathingly refer to as the “MarketingKlub” has some soul about it when it comes to protecting its players from yellow journalism. That’s at least something nice to observe. Kampl can take all the time he needs. 

Expiring Contracts  = Peter Gulacsi (GK), Xaver Schlager (CM), Kevin Kampl (CM), Timo Werner (LW)

Further Needs and Rumored Links, RB Leipzig

On the arrival front, Schäfer and his team prepare for what looks to be a rather uneventful window. Sporting CEO Oliver Mintzlaff may demand some proactive plays for a few more long-range prospects. Apart from that, the quality of the squad doesn’t necessitate much further tweaking beyond maybe a little more depth in the defensive corps. The current crew can easily achieve the goal of returning the club to European competition. More attention to downsizing the payroll a tad is needed. 

Further Needs = CB, RB, CM, ATTM

Rumored Links = Kenneth Eichhorn (DM), Quentin Timber (CM), Alex Toth (CM) 

GGFN | Peter Weis