BVB plan no big-name replacement – Jobe Bellingham a factor too | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund officially confirmed on Friday evening the transfer of Pascal Groß to Brighton & Hove Albion, which had already leaked on New Year’s Eve. Until now, it was unclear whether BVB would respond to the departure of the 34-year-old midfielder, but coach Niko Kovac has now also provided clarity on this matter.

“We are well equipped with Jobe, Felix, Sabi, and also Salih, and we won’t be making any further moves in this position,” Kovac explained to “Sky” reporter Patrick Berger, making it clear that he plans to rely on Jobe Bellingham, Felix Nmecha, Marcel Sabitzer, and Salih Özcan in central midfield.

BVB wants to support Bellingham

According to Bild, one reason for not signing a replacement for Groß is that the BVB management wants to back Jobe Bellingham, who arrived in the summer as a marquee signing from AFC Sunderland, and avoid creating new competition for him. Although Bellingham has not yet met the high expectations, CEO Lars Ricken, sporting director Sebastian Kehl, and coach Kovac are unanimously convinced that the English U21 international will break through. Not least because Bellingham regularly demonstrates his great potential in training and—so Borussia hopes—will sooner or later show it in matches as well.

A new signing for midfield would likely only become an issue if Salih Özcan were to leave the club half a year before his contract expires. Contrary to Turkish media reports of an agreement between Besiktas Istanbul and Özcan, the 27-year-old is said to still want to fulfill his contract with BVB, which is worth around five million euros per year. Certainly also because Özcan would have to accept financial concessions elsewhere.

Nevertheless, over the course of the just-begun winter transfer window, there could still be movement regarding Özcan’s situation—and perhaps also in Dortmund’s transfer plans.

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