Less than a week after selling Niclas Füllkrug to West Ha, Borussia Dortmund has found a replacement. On Monday, Dortmund announced the signing of Hoffenheim forward Maximilian Beier.
“After selling Niclas Füllkrug, we needed to act,” Dortmund managing director for sport, Lars Ricken, said in a club statement “We really wanted to bring in a young player with outstanding potential who we can help develop into a top-level international player in the medium term, and Maximilian Beier fits that profile exactly.”
Dortmund, in fact, did well by turning Füllkrug into one of the most in-demand German national team players. The Black and Yellows signed Füllkrug from Werder Bremen last summer in a deal worth €17 million (€18.5 million). One year later, the club moved Füllkrug on for a deal worth up to $35 million.
Most of the Füllkrug money has now been re-invested in Maxi Beier. According to a report by Transfermarkt, Hoffenheim will receive an initial €28.5 million ($31.2 million) plus €2 million ($2.2 million). Or in other words, just under the transfer fee received from West Ham for Füllkrug.
“Maxi was our top target after Niclas Füllkrug’s departure,” Borussia Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl said. “He’s very self-assured on the pitch despite his young age, and he has impressive pace, never stops running, and poses a real goal threat. On top of that, he has the versatility to play in several positions and various systems. There’s scope for him to develop further, and we’ll help him become an even better player.”
Although Beier is still considered a prospect, the 21-year-old was already one of the Bundesliga’s top goalscorers last season. Indeed, his 16 goals and three assists in 33 Bundesliga games ranked him fifth overall, ahead of his predecessor, Füllkrug (12 goals in 31 games).
The goalscoring record made Beier one of the shooting stars of the 2023/24 Bundesliga season. After spending the previous season on loan at Hannover 96, the Brandenburg an der Havel native saw his Transfermarkt market value explode from €2 million ($2.2 million) to €30 million ($32.8 million) and earn him a spot in Julian Nagelsmann’s Germany squad for Euro 2024.
Beier, in fact, becomes the third player signed by Dortmund, who was previously part of Germany’s Euro 2024 squad this summer. The Black and Yellows previously added Waldemar Anton from VfB Stuttgart and Pascal Groß from Brighton.
The transfer concludes another essential part of a roster rebuild that will see Dortmund largely borrow from VfB Stuttgart’s successful model. In Beier, the club might, in fact, have signed the perfect partner for the new signing, Serhou Guirassy.
Last year, Guirassy formed a fantastic partnership with Deniz Undav. Although they are not identical players, Beier is a similar type of forward to his national team colleague. Like Undav, Beier isn’t necessarily a pure no.9 and can play around a forward like Guirassy.
Signing Undav, therefore, gives us a hint of what new BVB head coach Nuri Sahin will attempt with this side. With Anton and Groß in the side, there will likely be a greater emphasis on possession and tactical flexibility. The Beier acquisition also points to a Stuttgartisation of Dortmund’s tactics.
