Borussia Dortmund Out of the Race for Ian Maatsen

This summer’s first small transfer saga is more or less officially over, as Borussia Dortmund have reportedly dropped out of the race for Ian Maatsen, according to Patrick Berger. Fabrizio Romano has reported that Aston Villa have offered €44.5m for the Dutch full-back and offered the player a six-year deal. While there was a release clause in place for Borussia Dortmund, The Athletic confirmed that this has now expired on Monday, and reports suggest that the price Villa are willing to pay is too much for BVB.

A price of €44.5m is too steep for Dortmund, but one could argue that the €41.5m release clause should have been triggered without a second thought. Now the Dutchman is heading to Birmingham with Unai Emery’s Champions League-qualified Aston Villa side—reportedly on a contract until 2030.

Ian Maatsen was one of the best players for Dortmund in the second half of the season, and all signs pointed to the player pushing to stay. Unfortunately, Dortmund couldn’t realize the deal within the financial framework. There will undoubtedly be two camps regarding this decision—those who think that €41.5m was relatively too much for BVB (it would have been a new transfer record by quite a margin) and the ones who would have triggered the release clause, no questions asked.

One could argue that Ricken and co. should shop a bit smarter, as Dortmund are also in the market for a number six, a number nine to challenge Füllkrug, a Mats Hummels replacement, a backup right back and a fitting replacement for Marco Reus. According to Turkish media, Dortmund have already contacted Ferdi Kadıoğlu’s entourage—a 24-year-old fullback from Fenerbahce who Sahin holds in high regard.