Borussia Dortmund have agreed a deal with Sunderland to take Jobe Bellingham to Germany as the midfielder follows in his brother Jude's footsteps.
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Sunderland and Dortmund reach agreementJobe to follow in his older brother's footstepsLeaves after helping Sunderland reach Premier LeagueFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
As per Fabrizio Romano, Dortmund will pay Sunderland a fixed fee of €33 million (£27.8m) with a potential additional €5m (£4.2m) in add-ons for Bellingham's signature. The clubs have also agreed to a 15 percent sell-on clause in the deal. The young midfielder was expected to depart the Stadium of Light this summer after helping the club return to the Premier League and had been in talks with Frankfurt, but now looks set on joining the club that helped his brother reach stardom.
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Once Dortmund registered their interest in the 19-year-old, Bellingham made Frankfurt aware of his desire to move to the Westfalenstadion. He has shone at Sunderland and, alongside a number of bright youngsters at the club, helped see off Sheffield United in the Championship play-off final. Bellingham's performances had attracted a number of Europe's biggest clubs and whilst the Black Cats will have been reluctant to let any of their stars depart, they will be pleased to have earned a club record return on the midfielder.
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Dortmund will have a Bellingham in the heart of their midfield again. Jude Bellingham made 92 Bundesliga appearances for the German giants before making a huge €103 million (£88m) transfer to join Real Madrid in 2023 where he has developed into one of the best players in the world. He went on to win the Champions League and was named third in the Ballon d'Or rankings in his first season in the Spanish capital. The younger Bellingham will be dreaming of his career taking on a similar trajectory.
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Bellingham will complete his medical and sign the final bits of paperwork before being announced as a Dortmund player. He is currently on international duty with the England under-21's ahead of this summer's European Championships, where they are in a group with Germany, Slovenia and the Czech Republic. Bellingham will want to show his new club what he can offer to their midfield come the new season.