clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Blerim Dzemaili Targeted By German Club

Napoli are going to have a hard time keeping their Swiss Midfield Trio together this summer, and a top Bundesliga side is already sniffing around one of them.

Giuseppe Bellini

Sadly, not all transfer rumors can be good news for Napoli fans. There will be nearly as many links with players leaving the club as those coming in, and there's already been a host of hair-brained rumors, including a particularly laughable one of Jose Callejon "being tempted" by a move to Chelsea, AKA the Wingers' Graveyard.

There's been one recently that makes a lot of sense, though. Borussia Mönchengladbach finished sixth in the Bundesliga after flirting with Champions League places all season long, and are gearing up for a Europa League qualification run. As such, they'll need to get deeper and better, especially in midfield, and for that Sky Sports Italia is reporting that their manager Lucius Favre has apparently turned his eye to an old friend: Blerim Džemaili.

As much as many of us love the workhorse Swiss international, this move makes a whole lot of sense for Džemaili. His playing time took a pretty big reduction this season, with manager Rafa Benitez preferring first a midfield partnership of Gokhan Inler and Valon Behrami, then of Inler and Jorginho once the Brazilian was bought in January. Even if Behrami leaves this summer, there's been a bevy of other midfielders linked with the club, and at the point Džemaili is at in his career, being fourth-choice is not exactly the best place to be in.

At Gladbach, Džemaili would be reunited with Favre, the manager who gave the midfielder his start with FC Zurich in the Swiss Super League. Gladbach currently have a fair midfield of their own, but many expect one or two of their talented youngsters to be poached this summer, so Džemaili and his experience would be in line for plenty of playing time. The added spice of a new challenge in a new league would probably be enticing as well, as Džemaili has been in Italy for six seasons now after leaving Bolton in England to join Torino in 2008.

It'd be sad to see Džemaili leave, but at this point it would probably be the best thing for him and his career. He'd be able to fetch a decent fee as well, and Josip Radošević seems capable of developing in to a similar midfielder given playing time and patience. This rumor makes sense and feels right in a lot of ways, so don't be shocked if it picks up some steam once Switzerland are done in the World Cup. Even if it doesn't, this will very likely be far from the last rumor to have our beloved Dzei leaving Naples.