Borussia Dortmund have confirmed the signing of Ligue 1 side Rennes’ teenage sensation Ousmane Dembele. The move represents a coup for the Bundesliga side, who beat out competition from the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Liverpool and Leicester City to sign the French 18-year-old sensation, who put pen to paper on a 5 year deal for an undisclosed amount.
Dembele, who recently revealed that he had rejected Claudio Ranieri’s personal plea to move to Premier League champions Leicester City, is highly coveted after having scored 12 goals in 24 games for Rennes in his first Ligue 1 season.
Speaking about the Normandy-born signing, Borussia Dortmund’s sporting director Michael Zorc, said “Ousmane can play nearly every position in attack. He is strong one-on-one, he can play with both feet, he is good at nutmegging and dribbling, and he is fast and dangerous in front of goal.”
Hans-Joachim Watzke, the Chairman & CEO of Borussia Dortmund, said “I have nothing but respect when I see how many high profile offers from all over Europe Ousmane has turned back and how he has stood firm about his commitment to BVB over such a long period of time. It is not always obvious that someone will act this way and it shows real character.”
“He has always given us the impression that he does not wish for anything else other than to play our intensive football for our special club in our unique stadium.”
Dembele is looking forward to his new challenge, saying “BVB showed a lot of interest in me right from an early stage and they have always kept close contact with me – this really impressed me."
" I am totally convinced of the Borussia sporting concept. I can hardly wait to play in the Bundesliga in front of more than 80 000 spectators in the Signal Iduna Park and to walk onto the pitch in the Champions League with my new teammates.”
Dembele's contract runs until 30th June 2021, and Dortmund and Rennes have agreed not to disclose the fee for which the French youngster was signed. The Frenchman, who was voted the French Ligue 1 Young player of the year, will look forward to linking up with stars such as Marco Reus in Borussia Dortmund.
It’s a moment of good news for Dortmund fans, who recently had to deal with the news of Mats Hummels moving to Bayern Munich. Dembele’s signing enhances their prospects of competing with the Bavarians next season.
