Report: BVB May Sell Stars, Including Sancho & Haaland, if They Fail to Qualify for Champions League

It’s no secret Borussia Dortmund might be in trouble. Sitting sixth place in the Bundesliga table after 20 matches on only 32 points is not something the club would have expected for the campaign. Dortmund sit 4 points from the coveted Champions league places currently occupied by Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Wolfsburg, and Eintracht Frankfurt. Even Bayer Leverkusen are ahead of Dortmund in 5th place, with all clubs fighting for a spot at next year’s premier European competition. According to German newspaper WAZ, BVB have prepared a shortlist of players that they are willing to sell if the club fails to qualify for the Champions League.

WAZ reports that BVB currently face losses of €26m from lost TV revenue, and could potentially lose another €75m if they fail to qualify for the Champions League. The club have identified a shortlist of eight players that would be sufficiently valuable to help make up the shortfall. Those players are Axel Witsel, Manuel Akanji, Mahmoud Dahoud, Giovanni Reyna, Jude Bellingham, Raphael Guerreiro, Erling Haaland, and Jadon Sancho.

Several other news outlets have also picked up the story coming out of Germany, including the Daily Mirror and Football London.

Really?

These articles seem very over the top, even with the initial report coming out of Germany. Obviously English clubs with deep pockets would be looking to get deals and take advantage of Borussia Dortmund’s need to sell. BVB have got the better of some of the Premier League’s clubs when purchasing some of the brightest talent in Europe, and those clubs would love to stick it to the German side this summer.

I believe selling both Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho in the same summer would be problematic for the Ruhr giants. Not only would this cause a massive disconnect with the rest of the players in the locker room, but also for supporters as well. While the loss of Champions league revenue would be a difficult blow for the club, on top of losses from “Ghost” games, I don’t think Dortmund will be hurting so much that they would need to blow it all up and start over. If the players cannot get a strong run of form going and get themselves back in the top four, CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke and Sporting Director Michael Zorc will have to figure out the best course of action and keep the balance right in the squad.

Your Thoughts

Will we qualify for the Champions League? Who should we sell if we don’t?