Dortmund could make a move for Chelsea youngster amid a successful CL season
The 22-year-old Chelsea loanee, Ian Maatsen, is performing impressively at Borussia Dortmund, making their Champions League campaign a successful one. An official deal by Dortmund could certainly be coming to make Chelsea’s young star permanent at the German club.
In order to provide Maatsen with crucial first-team experience, the Blues loaned him to Dortmund during the January transfer window. Since then, the 22-year-old has been the Bundesliga team’s starting left-back under manager Edin Terzic.
During his loan period, Maatsen made 19 appearances for Dortmund, starting every one of them in left defence. He quickly established himself as a vital member of the team. Since the beginning of the year, the Chelsea player on loan has started every Champions League encounter. He has only missed one Bundesliga game due to suspension.
Dortmund truly keen on securing Maatsen
Dortmund wants to keep Maatsen with the team past the end of his loan agreement, which expires at the end of the current campaign, according to Fabrizio Romano. This is good news for Borussia Dortmund that their Champions League funds would help them with the Chelsea youngster’s £35 million release clause.
Fabrizio Romano shed light on Dortmund’s potential interest in the Chelsea loanee, as he stated in his Daily Briefing column:
“Congratulations to Borussia Dortmund for what they’re doing in the Champions League, really special work, they’re doing a huge job. It’s been a special season in Europe and after beating Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, they also have almost guaranteed fifth spot in the Bundesliga, and another Champions League season in 2024/25.”
“It’s really important news for Borussia Dortmund. Why? Obviously they have the importance of Champions League but also the fresh money from the competition so that they can really attack their two main targets.”
“The first one is to keep Jadon Sancho. It’s not going to be easy but Dortmund will meet with Manchester United and try to find a solution. So let’s see what’s going to happen. And then Ian Maatsen. The player is really happy and he has a £35m release clause in his Chelsea contract. Conversations will take place and the club will really try to make this happen also.”
Dortmund are also keen for Sancho to return next term, although it is unlikely they would match his wages or anything close to the fee of around £112 million United paid for him. In the first leg of Dortmund’s Champions League semifinal on Wednesday night, Maatsen played the entire ninety minutes at Signal Iduna Park, helping his team to win over Paris Saint-Germain.
There have been reports that Dortmund’s ambitions for the summer transfer window depend heavily on their chances of qualifying for the Champions League. It has been reported that if they made it to the semi-final nearly securing a berth in the tournament for the following season, then the additional money they will get, will be used to try to sign Maatsen to a long-term contract.
Maatsen recently revealed his feelings regarding his tenure with Dortmund. He expressed a desire to remain at the German side as he is enjoying the game time he is getting at the club. With Chelsea having other priorities in their agenda, they might let Maatsen go.
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With next season, several changes are ready to come for the Blues. As evident by their recent games, they lack the conversion of several chances so they will be looking forward to bolstering their roster by bringing some quality additions to their offensive side and the sale of Maatsen could really help them generate some funds for their key upcoming transfers.
