Mats Hummels.placeholder image
Mats Hummels.
Liverpool are among the clubs linked with Borussia Dortmund centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck.
Mats Hummels believes that Liverpool-linked defender Nico Schlotterbeck is capable of playing for any club in the world.
Schlotterbeck is into the final 18 months of his Borussia Dortmund contract. The 26-year-old has been reluctant to extend his deal at Signal Iduna Park - and Dortmund could look to cash in rather than risk Schlotterbeck depart on a free transfer.
Liverpool are expected to be in the market for at least one new centre-back in the summer transfer window. As things stand, Ibrahima Konate will depart as his contract comes to a conclusion.
Sclotterbeck is yet to win a major trophy in his career. He was part of the Dortmund team that lost the Champions League final against Real Madrid in 2024, while he helped SC Freiburg finish as DFB-Pokal runners-up two years earlier.
Hummels, who is a BVB great and retired at the end of last season, was part of a Dortmund legends team that won the Legends Cup last weekend. The five-time Bundesliga winner believes that his former team-mates Schlotterbeck is among the best centre-halves in the world - and will have ambitions of lifting silverware during his career.
What’s been said
Via Westdeutsche Zeitung, Hummels said: “I know his thinking very well. For me, Schlotti is one of the best center-backs there is. He has the quality to play for any club in the world,”
"And I know how much he loves BVB. A player this good naturally wants to have a perspective, so that he can not only lift the Legends Cup in ten years, but also win something else before then.
On talks with Schlotterbeck, Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl recently told BILD: “I think it would be really difficult to come up with new arguments in every conversation.
“Of course, we try to convince him – with all the power this club has, and I believe also with the appreciation the boy feels, with the goals we want to achieve together. We want to show him a perspective that makes sense for him. We don't sit down together every day. These kinds of topics need time to mature.
"He has naturally given this break some thought, and we spoke about it beforehand. We will continue to talk. But otherwise, to be honest, there's no new information at the moment. It's clear that we want to continue. But no decision has been made yet."
Will Liverpool sign Nico Schlotterbeck?
Schlotterbeck is one player who Liverpool reportedly have their eye on. Having opted not to renew their interest in Marc Guehi, who joined Manchester City, the 26-cap Germany international could become a more serious option.
Liverpool may be planning for life without Konate, who has not committed his future despite talks ongoing. Meanwhile, Virgil van Dijk’s contract expires in 2027 and he will be aged 36. Joe Gomez’s deal concludes at the same time and he has been troubled by fitness problems in recent years.
Giovanni Leoni was signed by the Reds from Parma for £26 million last summer but he is recovering from a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament.
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