Borussia Dortmund wants Mats Hummels back from Bayern Munich! [Update: Sky confirms — for €30 mil?!]

When Mats Hummels left Borussia Dortmund for Bayern Munich, leaving the Yellow Wall behind to the chagrin of many diehard fans, few would have imagined that he might ever return. But according to a breaking story by Bild, a return to the Yellow and Black next season is a real possibility.

Bild reports that Dortmund has officially informed Bayern of their interest in Hummels and that Bayern has in turn informed head coach Niko Kovac of the potential sale of the veteran center-back. “Concrete talks” between the two clubs have already taken place. A transfer fee in the realm of €15-20 million is estimated for Hummels, whose contract with Bayern runs until June 2021.

Kovac relied on Hummels to partner with Niklas Süle throughout the second half of last season, but it was hardly smooth sailing for Hummels, particularly in the Hinrunde. Hummels struggled with poor form and baffling mistakes, drawing intense criticism after a dismal performance against Dortmund, after which he claimed he had played sick.

The imminent arrival of new-signing Lucas Hernandez — currently Bayern and the Bundesliga’s record transfer at €80 million — is almost certain to put Hummels on the bench. At Dortmund, however, he might enjoy greater recognition and playing time. As Bild puts it, in light of their deflated performance in the last Rückrunde, Dortmund is looking for players who know how to navigate high-pressure situations.

The big question is what Hummels himself wants. He has already been weighing the idea of transferring out of Bayern, but that would very probably entail accepting a cut to his salary. At Bayern, Hummels earns more than €12 million per annum. On Bild’s information, he would have to make do with slightly less than €10 million at his old stomping grounds.

Update: Sky Sport confirms Bild

Sky Sport’s Torben Hoffmann took to Twitter to confirm the story. To judge by his tweet, those “concrete talks” between Dortmund and Bayern are even farther along than we suspected:

We can confirm the information! Mats Hummels of FC Bayern is on the bring of a return to BVB. Negotiations have advanced very far! [The papers] have not yet been signed!

We’ll keep our eyes peeled as the story develops.

Update of the update:

Sky’s Torben Hoffmann says the transfer fee for Mats Hummels is currently hovering around €30 million!