NICO SCHLOTTERBECK BREAKS SILENCE ON DORTMUND FUTURE AS LIVERPOOL INTEREST HEATS UP
Nico Schlotterbeck addresses Liverpool rumors and his Dortmund future. Plus, the latest on Marc Guehi’s winter transfer status.
Nico Schlotterbeck recently said he's not feeling pressured to decide anything about his future with Borussia Dortmund right now. After he seemed to hint at wanting a move to Liverpool recently, Liverpool fans got excited.
Schlotterbeck, who is 26, was celebrating Florian Wirtz's first goal for Liverpool during their 2-1 win over Wolves at Anfield last Saturday. He commented on Wirtz's Instagram post, and that got fans talking since the transfer window is about to open.
Arne Slot doesn't have many options at centre back right now. Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate are the only healthy players at that position, since Joe Gomez and Giovanni Leoni are injured.
Schlotterbeck started playing professionally with SC Freiburg and joined Dortmund in 2022. He's played in over 200 games in the Bundesliga and Champions League, and he's also played 23 times for Germany.
He has a year and a half left on his Dortmund contract, so the club will soon have to decide if they want to keep him or sell him. But Schlotterbeck isn't giving anything away about his plans.
After Dortmund lost to Bayern Munich in October 2025, Schlotterbeck said, I have a Dortmund contract for over a year and a half.
My agent and I will talk about what's next, but there's no rush. I like being at Dortmund, and Niko [Kovac] has a plan that seems fun and interesting.
My next deal is a big deal for my career, so I want to make the right choice.
He also said that any talks will be kept private: my agent won't be talking about it publicly. We'll see what happens.
Meanwhile, Liverpool is still being mentioned as a possible destination for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi in the winter. Liverpool tried to sign him for £35m back in September, but Palace backed out at the last minute.
Guehi's contract at Selhurst Park ends next summer, making him a free agent. Clubs outside of England can start talking to him on January 1, 2026, but Liverpool would have to wait until the summer.
The only way to avoid that is for Liverpool to agree on a fee with Palace before the transfer window closes on February 2, 2026.
ANTOINE GRIEZMANN’S TRANSITION FROM LA LIGA LEGEND TO ORLANDO CITY’S NEW DESIGNATED PLAYER
Antoine Griezmann signs with Orlando City as a Designated Player, joining MLS from Atletico Madrid this July 2026.
Antoine Griezmann, who won the World Cup with France, is heading to Orlando City this summer after finishing the season with Atletico Madrid. He’s the latest big name to make the jump to MLS, joining a growing roster of stars.
Griezmann flew to Orlando this week and sealed the deal, signing on as a designated player. His contract officially kicks off in July, once the league’s secondary transfer window opens, and he’s set to be among MLS’s top earners. The exact numbers haven’t come out yet. At 35, Griezmann’s contract takes him through the 2027-28 season, with the club holding an option for one more year. He’ll wear his signature No. 7 jersey, the same number he’s sported for both Atleti and France.
All this became official on Tuesday, after weeks of rumours about his move to Florida. Griezmann’s been open about wanting to play in the States late in his career. Now, he joins a list of global stars in MLS: Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi, LAFC’s Son Heung-min, the Whitecaps’ Thomas Müller, and Minnesota’s James Rodríguez. Even his 2018 France teammate Hugo Lloris now plays in LA.
Leaving Atletico won’t be easy for Griezmann. He made his name there between 2014 and 2019, returned in 2021, and became a club legend. Over his two spells, he’s racked up 298 goals and 132 appearances in 792 games, tallying 14 goals and four assists just this season. He was Atleti’s top scorer during their run to the 2016 Champions League final, where they lost to Real Madrid on penalties. Two years later, he scored twice in the Europa League final to help Atletico clinch the trophy.
There’s still a shot for one last title with Atleti in the Copa del Rey final on April 18, where they face Real Sociedad. Plus, Atleti remain alive in the Champions League, with a big quarterfinal matchup against Barcelona coming up.
So, what’s Griezmann walking into with Orlando? Honestly, the club needs help. They’ve managed just one win in five matches to start the 2026 season, bleeding a league-high 17 goals and firing coach Oscar Pareja after a painful 5-0 defeat at NYCFC.
Interim coach Martin Perelman has his hands full trying to fix the defence, but Griezmann should provide a real boost up front. Orlando’s attack has stalled, producing only five goals and just under seven expected goals so far. Griezmann’s own scoring touch has faded a bit this season at Atletico; he’s beaten his expected goals average in only seven of his last 31 games, but MLS tends to favour attack-minded stars, so that could turn around.
What really stands out about Griezmann right now isn’t just his finishing. His passing has been excellent among the best in La Liga this year. He’s got an 84.2% passing accuracy in the league, averages over five progressive passes and nearly five passes into the final third per game, putting him in the 98th percentile for both. Plus, he’s averaging almost a quarter of an expected assist per match, also among Spain’s best this season.
For Orlando, the question is, who's going to help Griezmann carry the attack? The team might be heading toward a rebuild after dumping Pareja. Martin Ojeda is one bright spot; he scored 16 goals off nearly 12 expected goals last year. Duncan McGuire, a former U.S. youth international, is a regular, but his goal production has dropped off to just five league goals since his breakout 2024 season.
Griezmann’s signing brings global attention, but Orlando’s got a lot to figure out if they want to turn things around. Still, his arrival gives fans a reason to hope for something better.
ITALY RECORDS FIRST SQUAD CHANGE OF PLAY-OFFS AS CAMBIAGHI REPLACES FEDERICO CHIESA
Gennaro Gattuso calls up Nicolò Cambiaghi to replace Federico Chiesa as Italy face Northern Ireland on Thursday.
Federico Chiesa just dropped out of the Italy squad, days after finally getting his first call-up in almost two years. Gennaro Gattuso picked him for Thursday's World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland, and possibly another match with Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina after that, depending on how things go.
But after joining up with the team, it looks like Chiesa won’t be playing for the Azzurri. He’s barely started for Liverpool this season, just five times, with only one in the Premier League. He’s struggled with the physical demands at Liverpool and hasn't been able to put in the minutes he used to.
The Italian FA put out a statement: "Federico Chiesa was assessed on arrival at the Federal Technical Centre and deemed unavailable for the next two matches. In agreement with his club, he has left the squad. Bologna winger Nicolò Cambiaghi has been called up as his replacement."
Earlier this year, Chiesa admitted the jump from Serie A to the Premier League was tough on him, and he told Gattuso he wouldn’t return to the Italy squad until he felt "100 per cent". Gattuso backed him up: "I must respect what the player tells me. I often talk to him. We have to respect the decisions and problems that each of us has.”
He hasn't played for Italy since joining Liverpool, with his last appearance for the national team at Euro 2024. Chiesa has 51 senior caps, and from 2018 to 2024, he was a fixture in the squad. He was huge for Italy during their Euro 2020 win, starting all seven games and scoring two big goals in the knockouts.
Italy, meanwhile, is aiming for a spot in its first World Cup since 2014. They’ll face Northern Ireland next, who just called up Liverpool youngster Kieran Morrison for his first senior cap. Italy finished second in qualifying behind Norway, and Gattuso took over from Luciano Spalletti midway through. Premier League names like Gianluigi Donnarumma, Riccardo Calafiori, and Sandro Tonali are all in the squad for these critical play-off matches.
