Chelsea’s Dominic Solanke fits the mold of RB Leipzig’s transfer strategy. The discontented young striker could find himself in the Champions League next year with the Bundesliga runner-up.
As Michy Batshuayi found out this season, making it into Chelsea’s squad as a young striker is among the most difficult tasks in football. Diego Costa’s performance combined with Antonio Conte’s stubbornness to replace Costa during his slumps made the position impenetrable to any challenge. Dominic Solanke – in a classic “hold my beer” moment – made some early-season contract demands. He then watched Chelsea win the Premier League from home like the rest of us.
Even without the contract impasse, Solanke is at best fifth on Chelsea’s striker depth chart. Among the youth, Tammy Abraham and Bertrand Traore will get a more thorough look-in than Solanke this summer.
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While Solanke is surplus to requirements as well as persona non grata at Chelsea, he fits the bill well for RB Leipzig. RB Leipzig have crafted their remarkable rise around a development-oriented transfer policy. They only purchase players 18-24 years old, scouring Europe for overlooked and underutilized players. They then develop those players to master the club’s unique style of play.
The strategy has worked well. RB Leipzig threatened Bayern Munich’s hold atop the Bundesliga for the middle part of the season. Leipzig secured their first-ever Champions League berth and second-place in the league only a few years after coming into existence.
Mid-season transfer rumours linked Dominic Solanke with Liverpool. The supposed interest from Jurgen Klopp and the current interest from RB Leipzig speaks to Solanke’s suitability for the Bundesliga. His pace, movement and positional sense would fit in well with the pointed attacking style of a Klopp team or RB Leipzig.
Chelsea would rather not face Solanke in the Premier League, let alone sell a highly-regarded prospect to a top-six rival. Solanke’s talents have never been in doubt. Chelsea have long-known what he is capable of becoming, as he has been at Chelsea’s academy since he was a U-8.
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The Bundesliga would have been the most likely loan destination for Dominic Solanke if he had a future at Chelsea. Since he does not, a transfer to RB Leipzig is among the smartest moves for all involved.