Borussia Dortmund pulled out all the stops in order to land Birmingham City prodigy Jude Bellingham, with the youngster set to earn roughly €3m (£2.7m) per year with the German giants.
Despite only recently turning 17, Bellingham has been a regular for Birmingham in 2019/20, making 41 appearances in all competitions - operating primarily as a central midfielder, but also further up the field as well.
The Englishman's displays have led to much interest in his services, with a number of top clubs keen. More specifically, it has been Dortmund and Manchester United who have led the pursuit of Bellingham.
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Jude Bellingham is set to join Borussia Dortmund for a fee in the region of £20m, according to reports. | ✍️ @robacopeland
The latter were confident of securing his signature, with a source confirming to 90min in May that the Red Devils remained adamant that they were in pole position, while they were also keen on signing his younger brother Jobe.
Dortmund, however, felt the same way, and it is the Bundesliga outfit who have seemingly won the race as it was later confirmed to 90min that despite United's interest, Dortmund were closing in on his signature.
The Athletic now report that Bellingham will earn around €3m (£2.7m) a year in Germany - more than what United were willing to pay initially. As for the transfer fee, Birmingham will receive £20m as well as a 'sizeable portion' of any potential sell-on fee. He will sign a three-year deal until 2023 (as he is under 18), while there is also no release clause.
Christian Falk of Sport Bild further reaffirms that he will earn roughly €3m a year, but the transfer fee will be closer to €25m (circa £22.5m).
The Athletic further explain that Dortmund regularly reached out to Bellingham and 'actively attempted to turn him into a bit of a BVB supporter'. The talented teenager was also sent shirts and invited for a tour of Signal Iduna Park and the club's training ground before the winter break.
Furthermore, they also produced a 'mood video' which showed the 'sensation' of playing in front of the famous Yellow Wall, while also highlighting the development of young teenage talents (like Jadon Sancho) at the club.
And while United pushed hard and came very close to reaching an agreement, Dortmund's efforts were successful. In fact, after their 4-0 win over Schalke after the restart, he sent the club a picture of himself at home, watching the game on BT Sport in a Dortmund shirt.
Source : 90min