Report: Borussia Dortmund CEO Seeks Permanent Deal for Michy Batshuayi
German side Borussia Dortmund are seeking to sign Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi on a permanent deal in the summer. And who could blame them?
The Belgian, who moved to Signal Iduna Park on loan from the Blues in January, was in sensational form before suffering a season-ending ankle injury earlier this month.
Batshuayi scored nine times from 14 appearances after joining BVB as a temporary replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, immediately endearing himself to the club's fans, who want to see him back next season.
The club's CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has revealed that Dortmund are interested in a long-term deal but are worried that they may not be able to land the player on a permanent basis if the Blues change managers in the summer.
"The interest to commit him is basically there," Watzke told Sport Bild. "Chelsea have two strikers with Giroud and Morata anyway. But first we have to wait and see who will be Chelsea's coach next season. Then we'll see."
Antonio Conte is not Batshuayi's biggest fan, hence the loan deal that allowed the striker to spend the second half of the season in Germany. It is believed that Chelsea's purchasing of the 24-year-old from Marseille was above the coach's head as well.
With Conte likely to leave Stamford Bridge in the summer, the club could have different plans for the player depending on their next managerial appointment.
Batshuayi, meanwhile, previously revealed that he had always wanted to represent the Bundesliga side.
“I've always wanted to play in Dortmund,” he said to French football magazine Onze Mundial in early April.
"I'd already said so to reporters back in the day. If they tried hard enough they could find an article of me saying that when I was at Standard Liege! I was asked who I wanted to play for in my career, and my reply was 'Marseille and Dortmund', and now I'm happy cos [sic] I've done both. They are two major institutions, domestically and internationally."
