Dortmund are closing in on their first signing this summer, with VfB Stuttgart shot-stopper expected to sign for the club shortly. Their goalkeeper Roman Burki will likely give way for the youngster to take his place in the team.
According to a report by Patrick Berger of Sport1, Borussia are expected to complete a deal for VfB Stuttgart’s Gregor Kobel in the coming days. The Swiss goalkeeper has agreed to terms with Dortmund and will undergo a medical soon – as per Fabrizio Romano. Meanwhile, Berger reports that Dortmund’s current custodian Roman Burki could make way for Kobel. Burki – who lost his place to Marwin Hitz in the starting eleven towards the end of the season – is a transfer target for AS Monaco.
23-year-old Kobel initially signed for VfB Stuttgart on a one-year loan deal from TSG Hoffenheim in 2019. The Swiss custodian played an important role as Stuttgart achieved promotion to the Bundesliga that season, following which they decided to sign him permanently. Kobel signed a contract until 2024 with Stuttgart and went on to make 34 appearances for them in the 2020/21 season. However, he kept just five clean sheets all season – one more than Burki.
Several reports claim that Dortmund will pay around 15 million euros to Stuttgart for Kobel, who will sign a long-term deal at the club and earn a salary of 3.5 million per annum. He will likely take the place of Burki in the squad, who has recently been linked with a move away from the club. Burki, 30, signed for Dortmund from Freiburg in 2015 and has gone on to make over 200 appearances for the club. He helped his team win two German domestic cups during this period, as well as one Supercup.
Berger reports that Dortmund will allow Burki to leave the club on a cut-price fee of just 5 million euros. AS Monaco are said to be interested in the player, albeit no club has registered an official bid with Dortmund yet.
