Borussia Dortmund Transfer News and Rumours Tracker: Week of December 9

Borussia Dortmund will enter the Bundesliga's traditional winter break wondering what might have been had they added even more reinforcements to their squad over the summer.

Juergen Klopp's squad depth was improved ahead of the 2013-14 campaign, but a blight of injuries has dealt a hammer blow to the Ruhr side in their bid to reclaim the Bundesliga title.

January offers the chance for newcomers to be brought in, but Klopp told ARD last week that BVB currently have no intentions of bringing in new players for the second half of the season, according to Sky Sports.

Whether or not Dortmund make any moves in January, they still have an eye on the 2014-15 campaign—at the very least, Robert Lewandowski will leave the club, meaning a new striker is necessary.

Given the injury struggles of the current season and especially considering that the 2014 summer break will be shortened by the World Cup, BVB will be in the market for other reinforcements.

Their desire to sign new talent will only be heightened if they offload any other stars, which CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke recently claimed is not in the club's plans, but admitted via Augsburger Allgemeine that it could be a possibility in the case of coveted star Ilkay Gundogan.

Click "Begin Slideshow" for a look at all the players linked with a move to and from Dortmund in recent days.

—LAST UPDATE: Friday, December 13— 

Manuel Lanzini

Argentine source Ole reports that Manuel Lanzini is on Dortmund's radar and that the Germans are considering offering River Plate €10 million to release the talented attacking midfielder from his current contract.

The diminutive 20-year-old has made a good impression at River despite his young age, although the link to an attack-minded player may raise an eyebrow among fans of a Dortmund team that has more problems in defense to worry about than attack.

At the time of this article's update the Lanzini story had not gathered much traction in Germany, although it was reported by Spox.

Kevin De Bruyne

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Kevin de Bruyne was Dortmund's first choice to replace Mario Goetze in the summer and in May BVB reached an agreement with the player on a five-year contract. But the player was not allowed to leave Stamford Bridge at the time and a move never materialized.

Half a year later, De Bruyne has hardly played for Chelsea and appears set for a move back to the Bundesliga, where he played for Werder Bremen on loan last season.

De Bruyne's agent told German source Express on Tuesday that he will speak with Chelsea representatives next week and, if the player is released, will "Call (Bayer Leverkusen squad manager) Michael Reschke half an hour later."

Leverkusen have the best chance of landing De Bruyne, it would seem, but the agent also confirmed interest from Dortmund, Gladbach, Schalke and Wolfsburg. Whether Dortmund's interest is at all recent, however, he would not confirm.

Shinji Kagawa

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In spite of Manchester United's ninth-place standing in the Premier League, coach David Moyes is expected to be given a chance to reshape his squad in January, according to the Manchester Evening News. As many as 10 players could be on their way away from Old Trafford, with Shinji Kagawa among them.

Following the news from England, Welt reported that news of the Japan international's possible departure would fuel rumors of a return to Dortmund. The German source did not report any new interest from BVB; it only alluded to months-old statements from CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke that "the door is always open" for Kagawa at Dortmund.

Ilkay Gundogan

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Despite not playing a minute of football since mid-August, Ilkay Gundogan has made headlines as a transfer target at many top clubs. The latest news regarding his potential suitors comes from Spain.

According to El Confidencial, Gundogan is wanted by both Real Madrid and Barcelona. Los Blancos see him as a replacement for the 32-year-old Xabi Alonso, who is out of contract at season's end. Meanwhile, the Blaugrana consider him a suitable successor to Xavi, who will turn 34 in January.

Real are said to have an edge in the race to sign Gundogan, whose agent (his father) allegedly met twice with representatives of the club and secured first refusal on the player as part of their agreement to loan Nuri Sahin to BVB. The Spanish source also claims Arsenal and Manchester United have given up their pursuit of the player, having been told he already had an agreement with Real.

Barca are said to still be hopeful of signing Gundogan, however, and club representatives are said to have met with the player's father on multiple occasions.

CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke recently clarified via the Daily Star that Dortmund are keen to extend Gundogan's contract, but admitted he is unsure of whether this is a possibility:

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It is our absolute desire that besides Robert Lewandowski no other regular player leaves the club.

Only in the case of Ilkay Gundogan, we do not yet know how it will turn out. We would love to extend (a contract) with him.

"

Gundogan himself has been rather mum on his future. The latest word from the 23-year-old, via Kicker, is that "Dortmund is [his] first point of contact." 

Michy Batshuayi

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With Robert Lewandowski set to leave the club at the end of the current season, BVB are in the market for a striker to replace the prolific Poland international.

Thus far, there has been little word from the Ruhr area on who may succeed Lewandowski. One challenge Dortmund will have to overcome is convincing a reliable goal-scorer to move to the Signal Iduna Park.

One player who will need little convincing of BVB's quality is Standard Liege's Michy Batshuayi.

According to a Monday report from Spox, Batshuayi told Belgian source Het Laatste Nieuws that he dreams of moving to either Arsenal or Dortmund:

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"My parents, especially my father, think that I'm ready for the next step," said the 20-year-old who has "dream two clubs" in Europe.

"Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund. Borussia for their mix of quality and team spirit, Arsenal because they give young and talented players a chance."

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Neither Liege nor Dortmund have responded to Batshuayi's comments.