Assessing the Best Replacements for Ilkay Gundogan at Borussia Dortmund

For any club, it is always extremely difficult to replace a world-class star. Replacements are few and expensive and can be extremely difficult to prise away from their often mega-rich clubs. And even when it is possible to sign such an alternative, it's almost impossible to replace a player like for like.

Each player has his unique combination of attributes, bringing a specific role to the team. When another player takes his spot, the team has to adapt as much to the newcomer as the replacement has to adapt to his new surroundings.

Replacing a world-class star is something Borussia Dortmund have had to do many times in the past, and this summer, they will have to do it twice: in the cases of Mats Hummels and Ilkay Gundogan.

The latter has spent much of the last three seasons on the sidelines, with injury blighting his career following a brilliant 2012-13 campaign. And to an extent, the most recent campaign showed that BVB can operate without him.

Yet with the player having finally left the Signal-Iduna Park for Manchester City this summer, Dortmund need to look ahead and sign a replacement. To this end, there are several options.

Shortly before the announcement of Gundogan's departure, rumours began to swirl around Sebastian Rode possibly joining Dortmund. Bild (in German) reported on Wednesday that the 25-year-old's move to Dortmund was close to being completed, with only a release fee to be negotiated.

The Eintracht Frankfurt academy graduate has been underused at Bayern Munich but is a different player from Gundogan and would be one of several options BVB have within their team and elsewhere.

The simplest option would be to look within the current Dortmund team for a player who can take on Gundogan's role.

Although very different in terms of his playing style, Gundogan was signed in 2011 to replace the outgoing Nuri Sahin. The Germany international was converted from a playmaker to a more box-to-box player who could dribble and pass the ball over short distances, different from his predecessor, who had more in common with Xabi Alonso and Andrea Pirlo in terms of playing style.

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Yet Sahin, despite often being injured since his return to the Signal-Iduna Park, could be an option. The Turkey international has enormous talent that saw him become the Bundesliga's youngest debutant and its youngest scorer of all time.

Dortmund would have to adapt their midfield game to suit Sahin, but they built their midfield around him before and it resulted in the 2010 Bundesliga title. Injuries aside, he could be a perfect option.

The other possibility for replacing Gundogan within the Dortmund team is using Gonzalo Castro in his role. The former Bayer Leverkusen man is extremely versatile and settled in well after a rough start in Dortmund.

He lacks the world-class potential of Gundogan at his best but is an extremely reliable player who has many of the same characteristics of his outgoing team-mate: He can dribble, create, shoot, can pass over short and long distances and is proficient with both feet. Castro also has a more robust physique, making him less injury prone and more reliable with defensive duties.

Using either Castro or Sahin as Gundogan's immediate replacement would come with a downturn in Dortmund's overall quality, yet it could pave the way for the best possible future. For budgetary reasons, it's simply impossible for Dortmund to sign a central midfielder who is currently world class.

If they were to sign Youri Tielemans, however, they would be signing a player who has the quality to become world class. Bild (in German) linked BVB with a move for Tielemans to replace Gundogan last May and last week reported that the Belgian is again on Dortmund's radar. The 19-year-old probably would not start every game upon his arrival in Dortmund but could replace Castro and/or Sahin in time.

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Dortmund may be using a similar logic with their pursuit of Atletico Madrid's Oliver Torres, who was reported to be an option in January.

Ruhr Nachrichten's Matthias Dersch (in German) reported that Torres had a €24 million release clause and likened him to Bayern Munich man Thiago Alcantara. Although Torres was an outcast under Diego Simeone, the system Torres would play in under Thomas Tuchel would be much more suited to his skills, and he could flourish.

Tuchel and Dortmund would be wise to look towards younger options with the potential to grow rather than players who have already reached their peak.

It's important to have squad players to add depth and experience, but BVB lack the funds to bring in one of the world's best central midfielders without bursting open their wage structure. And signing a player who is "good" but not "great" on a long-term contract means putting a ceiling on Dortmund's potential for the next few years at least.

It appears that Dortmund are going for the option of signing a young and promising talent, with the option of having one of their current players share the minutes at least in the short term.

Whether they bring in Tielemans, Torres or someone else will largely depend on negotiations. But Tuchel has made a name for himself, having brought Julian Weigl from the 2. Bundesliga to the German national team and Christian Pulisic from the under-19 Bundesliga to the United States men's national team in under a year.

Ousmane Dembele chose Dortmund as his next place to develop, and BVB will be an attractive option to Torres, Tielemans or any other rising star they intend to use for the purpose of replacing Gundogan.

The current options are good, and given a couple of years, they could well exceed Gundogan just as the Germany international exceeded Sahin. 

@Mr_Bundesliga