Borussia Monchengladbach’s ‘selling club’ days are over according to sporting director Max Eberl, who tells WZ that the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal or Tottenham Hotspur will not be raiding the Bundesliga giants this summer.
After sneaking into the Champions League on the final day of the 2019/20 season, nabbing fourth place from under the noses of Bayer Leverkusen, ‘Gladbach suddenly have the financial freedom to back up their lofty ambitions.
And, despite an ongoing financial crisis which continues to grip German football, The Foals are now in a position to resist offers for their star performers.
BILD claimed in May that London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham are keen on the £30 million-rated Alassane Plea, a fleet-footed French forward who wears number 14 in homage to Thierry Henry.
The former Nice ace produced 10 goals and 11 assists, forging a formidable strikeforce with Marcus Thuram.
Centre-halves Nico Elvedi and Matthias Ginter have both been linked with Arsenal too, via Le10 Sport and Sky Deutschland, while all-action midfielder Denis Zakaria has admirers at Liverpool, according to Sky in March.
But, with the speculation entering overdrive, Eberl has picked the opportune moment to make Gladbach’s stance clear.
“This is the first time that we will not sell any of our cornerstones and keep the squad together,” Eberl says bullishly. “For me, it is clear that we will not sell.
“(In recent seasons), we sold players every year. But that’s simply not the case now. Those who are top performers like Elvedi, Ginter or (Florian) Neuhaus, (Denis) Zakaria, (Breel) Embolo, (Marcus) Thuram or Plea are young.
“Sure, day X will come sometime, even with those players mentioned. But not now. Today, there is nothing that would make me sell a player.”
After flirting with their first Bundesliga title since 1977 at times last season, Marco Rose’s exciting, counter-attacking Gladbach eventually finished just four points behind second-placed Dortmund.
Keep Plea, Elvedi, Ginter and co and there is no reason why they cannot realistically challenge for Bayern Munich’s crown in 2021.
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