Report: Marin Pongračić Set to Join Borussia Dortmund

In a surprise twist after a week of links with Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot and Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi, Borussia Dortmund are now set to sign Marin Pongračić from VfL Wolfsburg, as reported by the venerable Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano.

Following the announcement that Emre Can, who is not even a center back, would be injured until the end of September, the board seems to have realized exactly how bad that sounds and have opted to dip into the market for reinforcement. The 23 year-old German Croatian is a great candidate for the black and yellows, with the flexibility to play in the center or at right back. He is experienced enough in the league to slot right into the team, but also young enough to develop into a real talent.

Pongračić recorded ten league games with seven starts last term, which is not the greatest exposure, but hopefully his time at Dortmund can help him to continue his development. Chances are, he will find himself thrust right into the starting eleven soon, or at least on the bench.

More recent reports have spotted the player in the Dortmund camp, and reports from BILD have suggested the player will join initially on loan, with an option to buy around €12 million at the end of this season.

Assuming he plays well, this could prove to be some shrewd business by Michael Zorc in his final months at the helm.

In other news, I am really bummed that Marcel Sabitzer has gone to Bayern. RB Leipzig are just as well outfitted to challenge Buy-ern as Dortmund are, so it is really disheartening to see one of their best, their captain no less, cross the ugly divide.