Ajax confirmed the transfer of Sébastien Haller to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday. It has been clear for some time that the attacker will make the switch to the Bundesliga club for at least 31 million euros, but for financial reasons the reigning champion waited until July for the official completion.
At the beginning of July, the 2021/2022 financial year ended and partly due to the transfer of Ryan Gravenberch to Bayern Munich, Ajax wrote black numbers. Haller’s transfer ensures that the club starts the 2022/2023 financial year with a substantial financial buffer.
The amount of 31 million euros can rise to 34.5 million euros via bonuses. With Haller’s income, Ajax will have room for the possible arrival of Owen Wijndal, Steven Bergwijn and Brian Brobbey. The trio has been associated with the Amsterdam club for quite some time.
With the transfer fee of more than 30 million euros, Haller is one of the most expensive purchases ever from Dortmund. The German club previously paid similar amounts for, among others, Mats Hummels and Ousmane Dembélé.
Haller must make Haaland forget
For Haller, who was active for Eintracht Frankfurt from 2017 to 2019, the transfer represents a return to the Bundesliga. The Ivorian played at Frankfurt with 33 goals in 77 matches in the spotlight of West Ham United, which paid around 50 million euros for him in the summer of 2019.
His period at West Ham was not a success with fourteen goals in more than fifty matches. Haller left for Ajax at the beginning of 2021, which paid a record amount of 22.5 million euros. With the team from Amsterdam he became national champion twice and won the cup once.
At Dortmund, Haller must make up for the departure of top striker Erling Haaland. The Norwegian lost and exchanged Dortmund for Manchester City this summer. Haller signs a contract with the Bundesliga club until the summer of 2026.