Liverpool evaluating move for Borussia Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck

Liverpool are evaluating a move for Borussia Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck, according to reports in Germany.

The 25-year-old Germany international has almost two years remaining on his Dortmund contract, but has so far declined to accept the offer of an extension to 2030 on significantly improved terms.

Schlotterbeck’s potential availability has prompted an approach to the player’s representatives by Liverpool, the German newspaper Bild claims, with the centre-back reportedly seen as a potential long-term successor to club captain Virgil van Dijk.

Liverpool lavished a record £415m on players this summer, and would have spent more had a £35m move for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guéhi not fallen through in the final hours of the transfer window. 

However, amid uncertainty surrounding the future of Ibrahima Konaté, who has been linked with a move to Real Madrid, and the anterior cruciate ligament suffered by Italian defender Giovanni Leoni on his debut last month, the need to bolster Arne Slot’s back-line has become increasingly urgent.

What has Nico Schlotterbeck said about his Borussia Dortmund future?

Schlotterbeck, whose situation is also reportedly being monitored by Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Manchester City, has made it clear he is in no hurry to decide his future. 

“The appreciation on both sides is very high,” the German said before Dortmund’s Champions League victory over Athletic Bilbao earlier this month. “But it won’t be so early that I extend my contract. We’ll have talks now. I’ll sit down with [Dortmund sporting director] Sebastian Kehl, make a plan, and then we’ll see what comes of it.”

Dortmund’s managing director, Lars Ricken, has expressed sympathy for Schlotterbeck’s stance while pointing out that the club will not allow the situation to mushroom into a protracted saga.

“It is his absolute right to plan his future carefully,” said Ricken. “We respect that. And I believe that the focus is not on salary, but on perspective, trust, and conviction.

“We won’t rush into this. But of course, we don’t want to drag it out indefinitely; everyone is aware of that.”

A renewed effort to sign Guéhi, either in January or next summer, when he becomes a free agent, remains the most obvious solution to Liverpool’s defensive difficulties. That has done little to stem the tide of speculation, however, with Schlotterbeck the latest addition to a list that includes the likes of Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upemecano and Ronald Araújo of Barcelona.

What qualities would Schlotterbeck bring to Arne Slot’s Liverpool side?

Given his comfort on the ball, reflected in the frequency and accuracy of his passing, the Dortmund defender would appear a natural fit for Slot’s side. Before he suffered a season-ending meniscus injury last April, Schlotterbeck had attempted the third most passes in the Bundesliga, successfully completing almost nine in 10.

That would dovetail well with Liverpool’s possession-based style and, while the numbers show him to be less dominant in the air than Konaté, his consistently high tackle success rates in the Bundesliga would suggest he lacks little of the Frenchman’s prowess in one-on-one situations.