Donyell Malen’s future reconsidered: Blistering displays signal a renaissance in Borussia Dortmund’s colors

Borussia Dortmund’s Donyell Malen has been in a consistent vein of form that will likely lend itself to the Dutchman having a future in black and yellow beyond this season.

With the title race still well and truly alive into the final three games of the season, Borussia Dortmund marched on towards their goal of overtaking Bayern Munich by sealing an emphatic 6-0 win over VFL Wolfsburg to keep the gap between themselves and the league leaders at one point. While the plaudits will certainly go to both Karim Adeyemi and Jude Bellingham for their parts in the victory, one player in particular has also done everything he can to remain a consistent goal threat for Die Schwarzgelben; a certain Dutchman by the name of Donyell Malen.

In a piece written not too long ago, I highlighted Malen as a candidate for possible sale in the summer unless the player could maintain a consistent run of form until the end of the season. Malen, to his credit, has absolutely flipped the narrative when it comes to consistency. In fact, he has been one of the club’s most potent goal threats in recent months, scoring 7 goals and providing three assists in his last 7 Bundesliga games, bringing his season total in the league to 8 goals and 4 assists in 23 games. What’s more, Malen’s current form suggests that while this season may be coming to an end, he has the capability to improve on these numbers next season quite substantially.

Malen, as we know, has always been quite an energetic player. Even in the games where his performances seemed to underwhelm, it can’t be said that he didn’t try. Oftentimes, the only thing missing would be the final product as the Dutch international would put himself in a good position to score, only to hit a post or crossbar. Luckily for all of us, his love affair with the post seems to be  at an end, and a burgeoning relationship between the Dutchman and scoring goals seems to be blooming.

Alongside Karim Adeyemi, Malen has finally seemed to make his home out wide on the wings for Dortmund. It was a position many, including myself, did not think befitted Malen. As has been mentioned before, Malen’s best performances for former club PSV Eindhoven came from the Dutchman playing in a front two striker partnership. When he joined Dortmund in the advent of Jadon Sancho’s sale, it was slightly puzzling that Dortmund had targeted him as, perhaps not a direct successor, but a replacement in the starting 11 for the departed Englishman.

Credit must be given to Edin Terzić and Sebastian Kehl who continued to back and insist Malen play in this position because they believed the glove could fit, and with this run of form they have been vindicated. That being said however, I think the club should still look to invest in a traditional winger so that they have more options in terms of setting the team up. Malen himself, while showing pace and a direct nature to his game, is still not the typical winger that will look to feed the club’s predominant striker – Sébastien Haller. The club have both Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Julien Duranville to help back up both Adeyemi and Malen out wide, but depending on their development (and injury status) they still may need to bring in an extra player to help bolster their options.

Malen’s current performances have certainly earned him the right to show what he can do in the long term for the club. If his current form is anything to go by however, I think we can expect to see a much improved player that, while took his time to settle, is ready to be an important part of the success Dortmund will look to build in the coming years.