Breaking Down What Ousmane Dembele Will Bring to Borussia Dortmund

On Thursday, only two days after officially losing team captain Mats Hummels to bitter rivals Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund announced the signing of Ousmane Dembele from Stade Rennes on a five-year contract. According to Matthias Dersch of local paper Ruhr Nachrichten (link in German), Dortmund will pay an initial fee of €15 million for the attacker.

Considering the fierce competition the Black and Yellows fought off in capturing Dembele’s signature, fans have to be excited about the new arrival. Per the Guardian’s Ed Aarons, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City, Leicester City, Liverpool, Barcelona and Bayern were all interested in the France under-21 international.

Dembele signing for Dortmund a coup for the Bundesliga. Shows BVB’s determination, and the appeal league has to players beyond Bayern.

— Rory Smith (@RorySmithTimes) May 12, 2016

Dortmund’s officials spoke highly of Dembele’s character in the club’s official statement.

“I have nothing but respect when I see how many high-profile offers from all over Europe Ousmane has turned back and how he has stood firm about his commitment to BVB over such a long period of time,” sporting director Michael Zorc said.

“He has always given us the impression that he does not wish for anything else other than to play our intensive football for our special club in our unique stadium,” chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke added.

This level of maturity from a teenager—Dembele turned 19 on Sunday—alone should be enough to get fans excited, but his qualities go far beyond having his head on straight.

Despite only debuting in the French top flight in November, the versatile attacker has put together an impressive campaign for Rennes. Scoring 12 and assisting another five goals, per Transfermarkt.co.uk, …

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