Felix Nmecha’s strong World Cup performances have fueled interest in the defensive midfielder. In Dortmund, he’s planned as part of the midfield core, but it’s still not certain he’ll stay.
It was just two Bundesliga matches, the outcomes of which were already inconsequential for both teams at this late stage of the season. But for one player on the field, it meant more. Seventeen minutes against Eintracht Frankfurt and 90 minutes at Werder Bremen—during which Felix Nmecha didn’t need any standout plays to send an important message: I’m ready. Ready for the World Cup, ready for the national team—for which Julian Nagelsmann had even postponed the announcement of the roster in part because of him. That’s because the 25-year-old had previously been sidelined for about six weeks due to a torn ligament in his knee, and time was running out.
Nmecha is expected to remain part of the core
And at the same time, Nmecha’s absence may also have been an important indicator for the national team coach. Without the dynamic player with the long strides operating between the penalty areas, BVB had noticeable problems in some matches bridging the midfield, getting into the opponent’s third with pace, and creating a structured build-up. “He has a knack for playing in tight spaces because he has good anticipation and solid technical skills,” coach Niko Kovac had to admit: “Sure, we’re BVB at the end of the day, but BVB without Felix is different than with him.” A worse team, at least at this stage of the season.
No wonder that Dortmund’s new lineup is set to be built around Nmecha as part of a central axis. But not only is the future of Nico Schlotterbeck and Serhou Guirassy—as other key players—still unclear at this point; Nmecha has also caught the attention of Europe’s top clubs. His two strong performances at the World Cup against Curaçao and the Ivory Coast (1) have further fueled interest in the defensive midfielder.
The summer is still long
Numerous top-tier suitors are reportedly keeping an eye on Nmecha, and any further standout performances in the DFB jersey will only increase the demand for him. A move to England, in particular, could be appealing to the German-English player, as the Hamburg native—whose family emigrated in 2007—was trained at Manchester City’s academy starting in 2008. As a result, he qualifies under the Homegrown Player Rule, which requires Premier League teams to have at least eight such players on their roster.
Unlike in the next two summers, Nmecha will not have an exit clause in 2026. So, following his contract extension in March, BVB officials can watch the interest in him with relative ease. The price threshold is around 100 million euros—too much for most clubs. Currently, the trend suggests he will remain in Dortmund, but the summer and the World Cup are still a long way off.
