Borussia Dortmund are eyeing up a deal for Germany and Chelsea striker Timo Werner should striker Erling Haaland leave the club next summer.
That's according to German outlet SportBild, who claim that Dortmund's executive Michael Zorc considers Werner as the ideal candidate to replace Haaland, whose release clause of around £68 million becomes active in less than 12 months' time.
However, Werner's wages, which the Daily Mail reports to be in the region of £17 million a year, may be a stumbling block.
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Both in terms of style and form, Werner and Haaland could not be any more different. The former is renowned for his nimble footwork and electrifying pace and has endured a difficult spell at Stamford Bridge so far, scoring just 6 goals in 35 appearances. Haaland, on the other hand, is known for his power and ruthless streak in front of goal, a characteristic which has seen the 21 year old score an extraordinary 66 goals in 66 games in all competitions for Marco Rose's men.
The latter was on the scoresheet yet again last night in Dortmund's 2-1 win against Beşiktaş in the Champions League. Meanwhile Werner did not come off the bench during Chelsea's victory against Zenit St-Petersburg on Tuesday night and has played just 9 minutes since Romelu Lukaku returned to the club earlier in the transfer window.
Former Chelsea star Ruud Gullit has admitted he feels sorry for Werner and hopes that his form will improve should he find the back of the net sooner rather than later.
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"It's almost emotional to see," Gullit told Dutch channel Ziggo Sport, as quoted by Tribal Football. "You see he doesn't trust himself. But as a coach you see he's always in the right place. He just needs to put one of his chances away."
Should the speculation linking Haaland to the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City and Real Madrid prove to be true, Dortmund will hope that Werner will rediscover his form at RB Leipzig, where he scored 78 goals in 127 appearances, before they look to bring him back to the Bundesliga.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Chelsea, Premier League, Champions League, Bundesliga