Borussia Dortmund Reach Personal Terms With Ajax’s Edson Alvarez

According to Ruhr Nachrichten, Borussia Dortmund have largely reached personal terms with Edson Alvarez, a 25-year-old Mexican defensive midfielder who plays for Ajax.

In addition to (possibly) Enzo le Fee, Alvarez is probably the closest that BVB will get to a Jude Bellingham replacement this summer, although he doesn’t quite fit the same player profile. Unlike Bellingham, who can play defensively and in a box-to-box role, Alvarez is a classic #6 who sits very deep and helps build possession from the back. In this sense, he’s probably more similar to Emre Can than Jude Bellingham. His passing numbers are exceptional in almost every regard, although some of his raw totals are surely inflated by the fact that he plays for Ajax, a team that thoroughly dominates possession in the Eredivisie.

While Alvarez is a good signing, Borussia Dortmund will still be very shallow when it comes to more offensively-minded midfielders. Both Bellingham and Mahmoud Dahoud are on their way out, so Dortmund will need to make at least one more signing just to maintain their current squad depth level.

With BVB and Alvarez agreeing to personal terms, it will be up to Alvarez’s current club, Ajax, to negotiate with Sebastian Kehl regarding a transfer fee. His Transfermarkt value is currently €35 million. Assuming that Dortmund can complete the signing for around that sum, the club should still have substantial funds remaining to make some other signings this summer.