Official: Schlotterbeck's transfer to Dortmund finalized, Ginter possibly headed to Freiburg as replacement
SC Freiburg defender Nico Schlotterbeck's transfer to Borussia Dortmund was officially confirmed on Monday evening.
The confirmation came much earlier than many had expected, with Schlotterbeck himself saying he wishes "to create clarity for all parties involved".
There are some rumors about that Gladbach's national team defender Matthias Ginter is lined up as Schlotterbeck's replacement in Breisgau.
Despite claims that no decision would be made until after the season, Nico Schlotterbeck was introduced as a Borussia Dortmund player early on Monday evening. The 22-year-old national team defender signed a contact with die Schwarzgelben through 2027.
The confirmation came much earlier than many had expected, with Schlotterbeck himself saying he wishes "to create clarity for all parties involved".
There are some rumors about that Gladbach's national team defender Matthias Ginter is lined up as Schlotterbeck's replacement in Breisgau.
At present, there are conflicting reports on the transfer fee paid to Schlotterbeck's current club. Some reports from German tabloid "Sport Bild" and German broadcaster "Sport1" place the base transfer fee at around €20 million, with an additional €5 million in performance bonuses.
One reason that the transfer has been made public ahead of schedule concerns the possibility that Freiburg have found their replacement for the youngster and wish to introduce him as well. There are some reports surfacing in the German media that the Breisgauer are set to pick up Gladbach's Matthias Ginter off his expiring contract.
Alongside Niklas Süle, Schlotterbeck becomes the second German national team defender to join the BVB ranks ahead of next season. In statements released by the club, sporting director Michael Zorc praised the youngster's "enormous potential" and thanked Freiburg for the opportunity to conclude the transfer.
"In consultation with all the parties involved, I have decided to announce my transfer to the BVB today," Schlotterbeck noted in a statement, "I wanted to create clarity for Freiburg, Dortmund, and myself. I will now focus fully on the remaining three games with Freiburg, which I hope we will play successfully. After that, I look forward to my new tasks."
Tach, Nico! ✍️👋
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) May 2, 2022
Der #BVB verpflichtet Nationalspieler Nico #Schlotterbeck zur kommenden Saison. 🔜
Zur Meldung 👉 https://t.co/Elsseqfhpk