How Big a Steal Is Adnan Januzaj for Borussia Dortmund?

When it comes to the nature of the European transfer window, there’s usually a golden rule that rarely finds exception: Players from clubs like Borussia Dortmund always tend to end up at clubs like Manchester United.

Nuri Sahin had his head turned by Real Madrid, Shinji Kagawa made his name at the Westfalenstadion before being drawn to the bright lights of Old Trafford and, ultimately, Mario Gotze opted to make the brief trip south to Bayern Munich rather than stick around at Dortmund.

Yet, this summer spat out something of an exception to the rule that money flows down the football hierarchy and talent moves up. Thomas Tuchel and his backroom staff picked up Adnan Januzaj from Man Utd, and it may just prove to be something of a steal.

The first thing we should consider is that the young Belgian talent is, of course, only in Germany this season as part of a loan deal. It seems as though no fee has been agreed between both sides for a permanent move, but that shouldn’t take away from how smart this deal may well be.

When we flip such a move on its head, it, of course, means that the Bundesliga side picked up one of Europe’s top talents for absolutely nothing. Sure, it may only be for a season, but in the quick-paced, no-holds world of modern football, that could mean a lot of football and a lot of success.

Tuchel seemed to bring the attacking midfielder to Dortmund as cover for his attacking line of Marco Reus, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Shinji Kagawa, following the departure of Kevin Kampl, Kevin Grosskreutz and Jakub Blaszczykowski this summer.

He can play on either wing as an attacking player who enjoys hugging the line, through the middle as a classic No. 10 and even play up front as a traditional striker, or even a false No. 9. Januzaj may not be the master of any particular position, but he’s certainly the jack of any spot in the front line.

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The Belgian may not be a first-team starter each week, but he’ll undoubtedly get plenty of game time to show his worth to the Dortmund faithful before too long. And that’s where we’ll begin to see just how smart a signing he truly can be.

Despite what the three aforementioned departures have offered Dortmund down the years, there’s no denying that Januzaj is probably a better player than all three. He may not have had much game time under Louis Van Gaal, but few Man United fans could deny that he holds an immense talent, just waiting for a manager to unlock it.

Considering the form of Mkhitaryan, Kagawa, Mats Hummels, and even Marcel Schmelzer and Matthias Ginter, since Tuchel arrived at the club, there’s a good chance the Belgian international may be on the cusp of a revolutionary season in his career.

Dortmund obviously don’t have to get 30 goals out of Januzaj this season. They don’t even need half of that. But if Tuchel can get him playing anything like the starlet he looked like when he first broke in to United’s team, then he’ll be a valuable member of Dortmund’s side this season.

Although a set fee may not have been agreed between the two clubs this summer, there’s no reason to think that following a relatively successful season Dortmund could make a permanent move very appealing to the player and his parent club.

The current Man United manager clearly doesn’t think nearly as highly of him as his two predecessors and if the right offer was made, he’d surely cash in and go looking for talent elsewhere.

Dortmund may not only be on the cusp of a great season with Januzaj, but they may also be about to woo one of Europe’s brightest young talents in a long-term move to Germany.