Burnley Call Off Move for Soumaïla Coulibaly

A potential transfer for Soumaïla Coulibaly to Burnley has fallen through. Despite the completion of a medical check and most of the paperwork, Coulibaly did not get the move he was looking for.

Dortmund and Burnley had seemingly agreed to a loan-to-buy, which would have earned Dortmund €18 million due to a purchase obligation at the end of the loan. According to reports, this purchase obligation was not completely worked out and would eventually lead to the collapse of the move.

The fee seemed high, given Coulibaly’s lack of first-team experience. In this writer's opinion, it is surprising that Dortmund were not willing to return to the negotiating table, as a mandatory purchase of 15, 12, or even 10 million euros would still have been good value.

Coulibaly has failed to establish himself as a first-team option at BVB, joining from the PSG youth academy in 2021. Since his arrival, he has mostly featured for the U23 team. His most notable cameo came against Stuttgart in May when Mats Hummels subbed off injured. There’s no merit to putting the young man on blast two months later, so let’s just suffice with “it was not his best showing”. Since then, opportunities have looked bleak for the young Frenchman, who joins a growing list of PSG expats that have failed to make the cut in Dortmund.

Coulibaly is currently back at BVB and training with the first team, but his ambition is to play. It seems the front office is happy to broker a permanent separation between themselves and the player, and it will likely arrive before the summer’s end.

Coulibaly joins a growing list of failed transfers for BVB in the summer of 2023. The trend is becoming worrisome, especially as the summer trip to the USA grows closer. Preseason tournaments are where new players gel with their teammates, and if BVB waits much longer, that opportunity will be wasted.

Dortmund will need a 4th choice center-back to replace Coulibaly. Is that player in the market? The youth team? Let us know in the comments.