With reports of talks stalling between Dortmund and Adeyemi, someone needs to make a decision quickly regarding the forward's future at the club.
Karim Adeyemi has just come off the back of a 10-goal and 8-assist campaign for Borussia Dortmund and has been in discussions over a new contract, with his current one set to expire at the end of next season. However, recent reports have suggested that these talks have broken down and that the German forward could be sold this summer, in order to avoid losing him on a free transfer next summer.
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn ImagesReported by BILD, Dortmund and Adeyemi remain far apart regarding a new contract. Adeyemi is currently earning a reported €6.5m per year, but has demanded an increase to over €10m a year in a new contract.
This is quite clearly a sizeable jump from his current yearly salary, but this is not it, with it also being reported that he and his agent wants a release clause place into his new contract, which obviously Dortmund are very reluctant to do with a player who is on such a high salary, as well as the fact that the idea of a release clause in a new contract doesn’t exactly show long term commitment to the Dortmund project.
There is now a growing fear amongst the Dortmund hierarchy that Adeyemi may look to see out the final year of his contract and walk away for free, allowing him to sign with a new club and inevitably receive a hefty signing-on fee. This is a scenario that Dortmund are trying to avoid at all costs, with it now being entirely plausible that Karim Adeyemi is sold this summer for a lower price than his market value, but still better than not getting anything at all for him.
A number of clubs are said to be interested in him, as per The Athletic, with it being reported that the Premier League is his preferred destination if he is to leave Dortmund this summer. Aston Villa are a club aware of his situation and has had a long-term interest in Adeyemi, but as of now, it is not clear whether that long-term interest will end in Aston Villa making a move for the 25-year-old.
Adeyemi himself has come out in an interview with FunkeSport and denied the fact that he is asking for a significantly higher salary, and that talks have stalled, which he claims “have not been accurately portrayed”.
Brett Davis-Imagn ImagesAuthor's Verdict
For Dortmund, the aim needs to be to get clarity on whether Adeyemi is going to sign a contract as soon as possible. Dortmund cannot afford to let go of a player of Adeyemi's undoubted talent for nothing, so he needs to either come to an agreement on a new contract or Dortmund needs to start trying to find clubs interested in buying the German and set a price tag on him.
As long as the situation is solved this summer, it has the potential to be a win-win for Dortmund. If Adeyemi signs a new deal, great, they have kept hold of one of their star players. If he doesn't and Dortmund can sell him for a reasonable fee, given his contract situation, then that is also good for them as it is still money, especially if they can get any profit on the €30m they paid for him in 2022/23, and it allows them to reinvest that money into the squad.
