Transfer news: Who is West Ham target Niclas Füllkrug? Striker set to arrive from Dortmund

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Deal imminent 

Niclas Füllkrug is set to leave Borussia Dortmund after just one season. Signed for €17 million last summer from Werder Bremen, Füllkrug is about to join West Ham United. The rumors effectively started after the Black and Yellows added Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy in a deal worth €18m earlier this month. Stuttgart, AC Milan, and Atlético Madrid were potential destinations. But West Ham have now won the race for the German national team player and are set to sign the forward in a deal worth €30m including bonuses. 

First reported by Sky Germany reporter Patrick Berger, West Ham have reached an agreement with Dortmund to sign the 31-year-old national team player in a deal worth an initial €26m plus €4m in bonuses. Füllkrug will sign a contract until 2027 with an option for an additional year. West Ham see Füllkrug as an alternative to Aston Villa’s Jhon Durán. The Hammers had been in negotiations with Villa to sign the Colombian forward, but talks were difficult and have ultimately collapsed. With that in mind, West Ham switched focus to Füllkrug. West Ham’s German technical director, Tim Steidten, knows the player well and tried to sign Füllkrug while he was still with Werder. 

Publicly, Dortmund had shown some reluctance to allow Füllkrug to leave and, through the press, have communicated that the forward remained an essential part of the squad. Much of that was posturing, however. After signing Guirassy, Dortmund had four center-forwards under contract. On top of Guirassy and Füllkrug, Sébastien Haller and Youssoufa Moukoko are also still under contract with the Black and Yellows. Indeed, indications were that Dortmund would have to allow at least one of their forwards to leave this summer to make improvements in other areas of the squad. Füllkrug on the backs of an excellent European Championships was the most sellable asset. And for €26m plus €4m, Dortmund have now made a significant profit on the forward. Including bonuses, Füllkrug will become one of the most expensive signings in West Ham’s club history (overview). 

What sort of striker is Füllkrug? Although Füllkrug isn’t the most technically gifted striker, there is no doubt he can be deadly efficient. That fact is best underlined by Füllkrug’s record with the German national team. A glimpse in the Transfermarkt database reveals that the physical forward has scored a goal for Germany every 64 minutes. Indeed, one of the big arguments at the European Championships was whether Füllkrug should start for his country or is best suited as a super-joker who can turn things around from the bench in must-win games. 

“Füllkrug delivers arguments to play from the start but also to keep coming off the bench,” German national team head coach Julian Nagelsmann said at the Euros after Germany’s 1-1 draw against Switzerland in which Füllkrug scored with a beautiful header. That goal perhaps best describes Füllkrug’s best attributes. A big and physical forward, Füllkrug can wrestle his way into small spaces and be deadly both in the air and on the ground. “I don’t know what the secret is,” Füllkrug said when asked about his ability to score from the bench. “Because I am not used to coming off the bench when I play for my club.” 

That’s true. Füllkrug regularly started for Dortmund last season, including in the Champions League final against Real Madrid. But as a starter, he hasn’t been quite that effective as Füllkrug scored 12 goals and eight assists in 29 Bundesliga games for Dortmund last season. Also, while Füllkrug scored a clutch goal against PSG in the Champions League semifinal first leg, he did miss several chances in a strong first half against Real Madrid. Having said all that, Füllkrug has the perfect profile to succeed in the Premier League, especially when surrounded with the right pieces to feed him the ball in the penalty box.