Reported Borussia Dortmund target Merih Demiral set for Atalanta move

Juventus centre-back Merih Demiral, who has been linked with Borussia Dortmund in recent weeks, looks to be closing in on a move to Atalanta. 

Reports in Italy claimed last month that Borussia Dortmund are interested in signing Merih Demiral from Juventus. But now it appears that he is on his way to Italian side Atalanta. According to Fabrizio Romano, Atalanta are closing in on the signing of Demiral on an initial loan deal with an option to buy for around 30 million euros.

Juventus and Atalanta have already reached an agreement. Demiral will replace Cristian Romero in the Atalanta squad, with the latter on the verge of joining Tottenham Hotspur.

In addition to Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen were also said to be interested in signing Demiral. But according to Sky Germany, the two clubs never made an offer for the Turkish international.

Borussia Dortmund are considering signing a new centre-back this summer. But Michael Zorc said last week that they will wait until the injury status of Mats Hummels becomes a bit clearer before deciding on whether or not they want to bring in another defender. Dan-Axel Zagadou, Soumaila Coulibaly and Nnamdi Collins are also injured at the moment, leaving Manuel Akanji as BVB’s only fit centre-back heading into the new season.

Mainz 05’s Jeremiah St. Juste and RB Leipzig’s Marcel Halstenberg have also been linked with the Black and Yellows. And it will be interesting to see if the BVB bosses decide to enter the market again in the coming weeks.