Borussia Dortmund Targeting the Wrong Wolfsburg Player to Replace Mkhitaryan

As Borussia Dortmund's turbulent summer 2016 transfer window rolls on, it is looking increasingly clear that manager Thomas Tuchel and company might part ways with Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Although chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke told Bild (h/t Deutsche Welle) earlier in June that the club would not sell the Armenia international this summer, even if it meant the player leaving on a free transfer in 2017, Dortmund's recent actions have betrayed their real intentions.

Bild recently reported that Dortmund had opened discussions with Wolfsburg star Andre Schurrle over a possible transfer. There had been no previous documented interest from BVB in signing another attacking player after Emre Mor's capture in early June—and certainly not any in a mature, over-21 option.

But the Schurrle rumor coincided with reports of Manchester United's interest in Mkhitaryan, with esteemed journalist Gianluca Di Marzio (h/t translator David Amoyal) reporting that United have agreed to pay €38 million to sign the player, a value acceptable to Dortmund. And Bild's report connected the dots, claiming Schurrle was considered the player to replace Mkhitaryan in the Dortmund lineup.

It makes sense Tuchel would be interested in Schurrle; the player and coach spent two years together at Mainz from 2009 to 2011, during which time the attacker rose in status from teenage prospect to star of the Bundesliga and the senior Germany international side. In 2010-11, a then-20-year-old Schurrle scored 15 goals in the top flight and was given his first cap by Joachim Low.

If there is any coach who understands Schurrle and who can bring the best out of him, it's Tuchel.

Yet despite the familiarity between Tuchel and Schurrle, it would seem Dortmund are looking at the wrong Wolfsburg star to replace Mkhitaryan. Instead, Julian Draxler would be a more appropriate fit.

The first thing to look at when considering Mkhitaryan's replacement is the player himself and his talents. The Armenian is, above all things, a very intelligent player who is as adept a playmaker (and perhaps more so) as he is a scorer.

His renaissance under Tuchel was perhaps the most important factor in Dortmund's ability to earn a whopping 78 points despite Marco Reus being often injured throughout the last campaign and rarely producing his best form.

Reus' absence left a void Mkhitaryan filled brilliantly, acting as the go-to man in the Dortmund attack for the purposes of creating scoring opportunities.

On the ball, Mkhitaryan offers a full range of threats. It's difficult to tell whether he'll seek the ball on the left or right flank or in the center. It seems he doesn't have a weak foot, and he has great perception about when he has the opportunity to shoot, pass or dribble. As such, it's nearly impossible to tell what Mkhitaryan will do with the ball.

Schurrle is a talented player, but he's nowhere near as multi-dimensional as Mkhitaryan in terms of his skill set. The Wolfsburg man's right foot is his strongest by some margin, and he is very much the type of winger to cut in from the left side and shoot on goal. He can cross if playing on the right wing, but his style is more a matter of using pace to create a yard of space to play the ball hopefully for a forward; it's more brute force than the finesse Mkhitaryan provides.

Schurrle can dribble but is more forward than playmaker, his skills resting more in the area of being the player who is found by a midfielder than being the man to set up attacking moves.

In the Dortmund system, Reus or Shinji Kagawa would need to provide service. The former's injury record is a concern, while it's questionable whether the latter possesses enough quality to deliver at the highest level.

Draxler would be a much more appropriate target. He has one more year left on his contract than Schurrle, but Wolfsburg are cash-strapped after missing out on European football next season and might be wiling to sell for the right price. Draxler will likely be looking to move, as he simply is too good not to play in the Champions League.

Like Mkhitaryan, Draxler possesses the talent to turn games on his own, both as a playmaker and as a goalscorer. The 22-year-old has shown a remarkable balance between serving as the finisher (38 senior goals for Schalke and Wolfsburg) and provider (37 assists, per Transfermarkt).

The former Schalke 04 man is proficient with both feet and can play anywhere in attack bar striker. He has the game intelligence and technical quality to be the go-to man for his team in possession, just like Mkhitaryan. Anyone who saw his gala against Slovakia on Sunday knows just how versatile and devastatingly effective Draxler can be.

Draxler, of course, comes with some risk. He has proved to be prone to injury, and he also has yet to show consistency at a high level until this point in his career. At the same time, he is young and could be a bit of a late bloomer (like Reus), while playing under Tuchel might offer a better level of coaching support and stability than he ever had in Gelsenkirchen or has had at Wolfsburg.

And it's not as though Schurrle is at the peak of his career, either; the former Chelsea man was relegated to a substitute's role for a fair portion of last season.

Despite the temptation for Tuchel to reunite with a player he knows and understands in Schurrle, Dortmund should instead look for a player who is more likely to take on Mkhitaryan's role in the team, and that is Draxler.

For all the risk the Wolfsburg man poses, there is enormous upside potential, and after Dortmund's success last season, Tuchel should feel confident in his ability to bring the best out of Draxler.

@Mr_Bundesliga