Sunderland AFC: Borussia Dortmund's Jobe Bellingham transfer stance becomes even clearer | OneFootball

Jobe Bellingham following in his brother's footsteps this summer is "becoming more concrete", according to reports in the German press.

Sunderland midfielder Jobe Bellingham following in his brother's footsteps by moving from the Championship to the Bundesliga is reportedly "becoming more concrete".

The Black Cats are set to take part in the Championship play-off semi-finals against Coventry City, yet there are plenty of transfer rumours flying around regarding some of their best players.

One of those this season has been Bellingham, and it comes as no surprise to see that clubs are taking more of an interest in the youngster now that European leagues are closing in on finishing.

Fresh Borussia Dortmund claim made over Jobe Bellingham interest

German publication Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ) (via SportWitness) claim Borussia Dortmund had been sceptical that the younger Bellingham brother has the potential to grow into the player that Jude is now, but also that their decision to take a chance on him could come down to what happens at the end of their Bundesliga season.

Dortmund are currently in fifth place in the Bundesliga, one point behind SC Freiburg. With two games of their season left to play, overturning that deficit would earn the club tens of millions of Euros in additional revenue from Champions League qualification, which would make taking a chance on Bellingham junior much easier for them.

The report also states that the club have already decided not to retain Carney Chukwuemeka, who has been on loan from Chelsea since the start of February, beyond the end of this season in order to free up space for the Sunderland midfielder.

Bellingham only needs to look at the mercurial rise of his brother to understand how moving to Germany could turbocharge his career.

Jude played one season in the Championship for Birmingham City in the Championship before Dortmund signed him in July 2020, selling him on three years later to Real Madrid for €103 million (£88 million), with the potential to rise by 30% to approximately €133.9 million (£115 million) due to add-ons.

WAZ report that the fee that Sunderland are looking for is €25 million (£21 million), and if Dortmund are convinced by him, this would certainly not be an insurmountable transfer fee.

But there could be an added complication. Sunderland are in the Championship play-offs and, despite their recent League form, winning those to claim a place in the Premier League could throw a spanner into the works.

The status of the Premier League is such that Bellingham could be persuaded to say, should they get through them successfully.

WAZ claimed that Dortmund’s delegation didn’t travel to England ‘just to get a feel of things’, but it may well be the case that this particular transfer saga could yet have at least a couple of weeks left to run.