Despite prizing Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski away from the Westfalenstadion in the past consecutive summers, Bayern Munich will be back again for a third Dortmund star next summer. That Reus, at 25 and with an established Champions League club, has a release clause in his contract in the first place is a curious development. But Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke admitted that inserting one was the only way to beat rivals to Reus in 2012 when he left Gladbach. And just as Gladbach lost Reus for relative pittance against their wishes, Dortmund more than likely will too despite their attempts to tie him to a new deal. This has not been a good year for the forward and if he was ever going to be tempted to leave, now would be the time. Dortmund were second best to Bayern in the Bundesliga as well as the DFB-Pokal last season and look no better this time around. While his Germany team-mates were celebrating the World Cup win in Brazil, Reus, who should have been a key part of the team, was half the world away watching on television with a damaged ankle. Reus tore his ligaments in the final pre-tournament friendly against Armenia and missed the tournament altogether. He repeated the injury in the Euro 2016 qualification defeat of Scotland and is only now, in late October, coming into the Dortmund team on a regular, consistent basis. And how they need him. Klopp has been without key players all season, Reus, Mats Hummels and Ilkay Gundogan chief among them, and are now languishing in 15th place in the Bundesliga after nine matches. Their business model is only truly sustainable if they maintain Champions League football. Dortmund have got to improve, drastically, in the league to have any chance of making the top four this season. Otherwise they will again have to cut their cloth accordingly. The club earned €34,725,000 [£27.3m] from Champions League participation last season and that shortfall will have to be met in player sales. Reuss departure may seem inevitable but they could also be forced to cash in on the likes of their captain Hummels. “For Dortmund it is getting harder and harder to keep Marco, Dortmund legend Jurgen Kohler told Bild recently. The club can only keep hold of Reus if they invest properly for the next four or five years. Bayern will not let up in their spending. At the end of the day, I’m sure it is a question of money. Their recent poor league form, which now stretches to six games without a win and just one point from a possible 18, has meant that contract renegotiations with Reus have been delayed. The club had hoped to improve Reuss wages as well as remove the release fee - scheduled to drop next summer. His current deal runs until 2017 but there will be no contract discussions until the poor run is over. Reus, however, is a hometown boy and the hope, still, at the club is to provide him with the perfect conditions to thrive. Watzke also warned Reus against the potential pitfalls of life away from Dortmund. Nuri Sahin and Shinji Kagawa left the club for Real Madrid and Manchester United respectively only to find that the grass was not greener on the other side. I know Marco, I think quite well, and I can say that things with him are not primarily about money. We will hold talks with Marco, in which it will be important to show our total package, Watzke told WAZ. It consists of the economy, ambitions and extreme confidence that we give to the player. I have a feeling that our players are happy with us. For those who have moved, I had the impression it was not always compelling. To put it mildly. Marco Reus as a player from Borussia Dortmund can characterise an era, as a legend. This is, for my taste, much more important than two titles more on the CV. But Reus underwhelming year to date might have him considering his options. He will not win the title with Dortmund this year, thats for sure, and the clubs big hope is to win the Champions League. They are going strong in that competition but are by no means a sure bet to win it outright. Therefore, after missing out on the World Cup, Reus may no longer be prepared to play the waiting game and instead move to a club that is primed for immediate success, like Bayern or City. In the recent past, Eden Hazard, Gareth Bale and Luis Suarez have all been at the centre of drawn out transfer sagas. Now it is Reuss name which will dominate the transfer landscape until next summer!
Posted on: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 05:34:02 +0000
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