Borussia Dortmund are reportedly ‘closing in on a deal’ to sign Marcel Sabitzer from Bayern Munich.
According to Fabrizio Romano and Florian Plettenberg, the deal is set to cost Edin Terzic’s side around £16million and is ‘on the verge of being completed’.
It comes after Manchester United decided not to make the versatile midfielder’s loan contract permanent.
Erik ten Hag signed the 29-year-old back in January as injury cover for Cristian Eriksen, who had been ruled out for three months with an ankle injury.
While Mail Sport reported that the Dutch manager remained an admirer of the Austrian, the Red Devils have since looked elsewhere to strengthen in midfield, signing Mason Mount from Chelsea instead.
As part of Sabitzer’s loan agreement, United would have had to pay the Bundesliga champions £22m to buy him out of his contract, which is set to expire in 2025.
Should his move to Dortmund go ahead, he could join a niche group of players that includes, Raphael Guerreiro, Mario Götze and Mats Hummels, who have played for both of the German rivals.
Sabitzer, who has also enjoyed spells with RB Leipzig and RB Salzburg, joined Bayern back in 2021 for a fee of £13m.
He would struggle to nail down a place in Bayern’s starting line up, making just 54 appearances before being loaned out to United in January.
Sabitzer would go on to play 18 times in all competitions for Man United in the brief time he was at the club, notably suffering a season ending knee-injury which ruled him out for their final four matches of the season.
Last year’s Bundesliga runners-up, meanwhile, are looking to strengthen their midfield stocks following the departure of Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in a whopping £113m move earlier this summer and Sabitzer could be a very good option for them, considering his ability to play in multiple positions in midfield.
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