Why Celtic should move for Niklas Dorsch as a long-term prospect
According to the Glasgow Evening Times (h/t The Telegraph), Celtic have been linked with a move for Niklas Dorsch, who currently plies his trade with Heidenheim in the German second-tier.
Neil Lennon needs to bolster his squad in the upcoming transfer window after the Hoops secured a place in the Round-of-32 of the UEFA Europa League with a 2-1 victory over Lazio on Matchday 4.
Born in Lichtenfels, Germany, Dorsch started his footballing education at lower division clubs FC Baiersdord and DTFS Rehau before spending three years in the youth system at FC Nurnberg.
The central midfielder joined Bayern Munich at the youth level in 2012 and was promoted to the reserve team in 2016 following his rapid development before earning his senior professional bow in the 2017-18 campaign.
Dorsch scored in his only first-team appearance for the Bavarian giants in a 4-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga but limited playing opportunities at the highest level prompted him to seek greener pastures.
The 21-year-old, who has represented Germany at all age-group levels from U15 o U21, completed a switch to second-tier outfit Heidenheim in the summer of 2018.
The defensive midfielder hasn’t looked back since then and has gone from strength to strength over the past 12 months, accumulating 3 goals and 6 assists in 47 appearances for Heidenheim across all competitions.
As per whoscored, Niklas Dorsch has averaged 62.6 passes per game at an accuracy rate of 91.7%, including 7 successful long balls, 2.6 tackles, 0.7 key passes and 0.9 interceptions per game in the Bundesliga II this term.
Not only that, but the German U21 international has also illustrated a great deal of proficiency when it comes to creating his own space in the middle of the park with his dribbling abilities.
Dorsch has completed 30 out of his attempted 34 dribbles, which amounts to a success rate of 88.23% and an average of 2.5 per game, numbers which are truly incredible for someone who is not profiled as a creative midfielder.
To put things into perspective, Niklas Dorsch looks like a fine young talent with a lot of scope for improvement in the years to come and Celtic would bag a real coup if they manage to get a deal over the line for the German during the mid-season trading period.
Notwithstanding the fact that veteran Scott Brown is still going strong and Callum McGregor recently put pen to paper on a long-term deal at Parkhead, Lennon doesn’t have a lot of depth in central midfield beyond those two regular starters.
Brown is already at the autumn of his career at 34 and Celtic should be wise enough to identify a potential long-term successor to his throne.
Olivier Ntcham is capable of playing as a part of the midfield pivot but with Nir Bitton out of contract next summer and Eboue Kouassi’s spell at the club proving to be a completely ill-fated one, Dorsch would add some much-needed depth and variety to the squad.
Verdict
Celtic could potentially pocket a big profit from his sale in the future if Dorsch goes on to fulfil his potential at Parkhead.
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Lennon has a good track record when it comes to plucking out little-known talents from far corners of the globe and transforming them into quality professionals.
All in all, Celtic’s interest in the German starlet certainly strikes the right chords and could pay off handsomely for the Hoops moving forward.