Report: Manuel Akanji set for new contract as defensive reinforcements seem to be on Borussia Dortmund’s horizon
Borussia Dortmund defender Manuel Akanji looks set for a new contract with the club, per BILD. This will come as good news to the Borussia Dortmund faithful as the defender has been the silver lining of their floundering backline this season.
The Swiss international has amassed 21 appearances for Borussia Dortmund over the course of the season and been responsible for some of their best defensive moments, often sliding in at the last minute with precise and strong recoveries to save his side in dire situations. Akanji’s stats over the last year have seen him put in 9.9 pressures, 1.9 tackles, 3.5 clearances, and win 2.2 aerial duels per 90 minutes, which paints a picture of just how busy he’s been kept at the back for BVB.
Furthermore, Akanji has maintained an impressive pass success percentage of 91.1 percent per 90 minutes. Akanji, like his defensive partner Mats Hummels, is no stranger to sending a progressive pass up to his attacking teammates. His overall skillset makes him the epitome of the modern center back and makes him a great asset for his side.
Borussia Dortmund’s plans to extend Akanji seem to coincide with their plans for the future of the club’s defense. With Mats Hummels not getting any younger, Akanji is being planned as half of Dortmund’s next first choice pairing. His partner could end up being Freiburg’s Nico Schlotterbeck. BILD are reporting that Borussia Dortmund have the edge in the race to sign the German international in the summer.
Schlotterbeck’s quality is of course undeniable at this point, as he has done an excellent job for Freiburg. The defender has stated in the past though that he would like to move to Bayern Munich in the future. Club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke announced a few years back that Dortmund will no longer be selling their players to the Rekordmeister. So it will be interesting to see how keen Schlotterbeck is on that move to Bayern.
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Of course, all of this is speculation at this point, but should Borussia Dortmund actually sign Schlotterbeck, he would undoubtedly make their defense stronger. His partnership with Akanji could prove to be quite formidable in the long term, which would go a long away towards lessening the amount of goals the club lets in currently, and this would be a very welcome sight indeed.