Transfer Analysis: Borussia Dortmund have strengthened their defence and rejigged their attack this summer | OneFootball

Perennial Bundesliga runners-up Borussia Dortmund have had a pretty busy summer. With six new permanent acquisitions, they have not had such an active transfer window in terms of signings since 2018.

Of course, the headline transfer for them is a departure – Erling Braut Haaland to Manchester City. They reinvested the transfer fee by signing Sébastien Haller from Ajax and Karim Adeyemi from Red Bull Salzburg as replacements in attack. Additionally, they have also bolstered their defence and defensive midfield.

(Image credit: Transfermarkt)

Unfortunately, Haller was diagnosed with a testicular tumour soon after his move to Dortmund, so he will not be available for the foreseeable future.

On that basis, plenty of attacking responsibility will fall on the shoulders of Karim Adeyemi, who scored 19 goals in the Austrian Bundesliga last season. His underlying numbers were equally impressive, as he racked up 16.2 xG and added some value with his finishing, as his xGOT (Expected Goals on Target) was 18.1.

The big question mark surrounding him is he played in a strike-duo last season, where he thrived by regularly drifting out to the left as his heatmap from the 2021/22 Austrian Bundesliga shows.

With Haller out, Adeyemi is Dortmund’s only recognised centre-forward option as Donyell Malen likes to operate on the left in a similar manner, while highly-rated youngster Youssoufa Moukoko still has to prove himself in the Bundesliga.

Dortmund have other attacking options to rely on for their goals, as the likes of Marco Reus, Julian Brandt, Giovanni Reyna and potentially Jude Bellingham should be able to chip in with noteworthy contributions.

BVB have also signed talented Manchester City winger Jayden Braaf. Although he is yet to establish himself at a senior level after an injury ruined his loan spell at Udinese, the last time a City winger went to Dortmund, he made quite a name for himself.

Scoring goals is not the problem for Dortmund at the moment. They scored the second-most goals in the league last season (behind Bayern Munich, of course), but it was their defence that proved troublesome. They conceded the ninth-most goals in the league with 52, which is the same number as Bochum.

This will be one of the things new manager Edin Terzić will have to address, but he was helped by his predecessor Marco Rose, who made three key defensive signings. Two were centre-backs, and the other was defensive midfielder Salih Özcan. The 24-year-old Turkish international was one of the key players for a Köln side that defied expectations by qualifying for Europe, and as his pizza chart shows, he did a lot of defensive work at the base of their 4-1-3-2 formation.

Özcan’s arrival will not overcrowd the defensive midfield part of Dortmund’s squad because Axel Witsel’s move to Atlético Madrid vacated a spot for him.

One of the headline signings before the transfer window had even opened saw Niklas Süle leave Bayern for Dortmund on a free transfer. The German international was one of the league’s best centre-backs in ball progression and was even used in an auxiliary right-back role due to his abilities.

He was later joined by one of the biggest defensive talents in German football, Nico Schlotterbeck. He was enthralling to watch at Freiburg, where he showcased his all-action style of play that is even highlighted by the data.

The only departure in the centre-back position saw Dan-Axel Zagadou leave at the end of his contract. Süle and Schlotterbeck could find themselves playing in a back-three if they both are to start, most likely alongside German veteran Mats Hummels. This switch to a back-three should also suit Raphaël Guerreiro, who excelled in a wing-back role under Lucien Faivre but was not so impressive as a left-back last season.

The remaining transfers include the retirement of Marcel Schmelzer and a sort of revolving door of back-up goalkeepers. Roman Bürki and Marvin Hitz have been replaced by Marcel Lotka and Alexander Meyer, but neither of them are expected to start ahead of Gregor Kobel right now.

Dortmund’s transfer business has been quite good this summer. They have strengthened their primary area of weakness, bolstered their midfield with a very shrewd pickup of Özcan for a low price, and also replaced Haaland quite well on paper, although Haller’s unexpected medical issue represents some unavoidable bad luck for both the club and player.

The departure of Rose was a bit puzzling after the three good signings he made, but Terzić will now have a chance to prove himself over a more extended period after winning the club some much-needed silverware in the DFB-Pokal during his interim spell.

The ultimate goal will be to seriously challenge Bayern for the Bundesliga title, but only time can tell if Dortmund will be able to do that. It will not be easy at all, though, as Julian Nagelsmann’s side have done well to mask their weaknesses in the transfer window.

Stats courtesy Transfermarkt, Opta via FotMob, Wyscout and StatsBomb via Fbref.