‘Leave him’ – Chelsea told to avoid triggering ‘undisclosed clause’ to end £15m star’s loan early

Chelsea have been warned not to trigger the release clause of Aaron Anselmino, who is on loan at Borussia Dortmund.

The 20-year-old signed from Boca Juniors in 2024 but arrived permanently at Stamford Bridge this year after remaining with the Argentine giants on loan.

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The £15.6million centre-back made his debut for the Blues at the FIFA Club World Cup, arriving as a substitute against Benfica in the Round of 16.

And after that tournament, which the Blues won by beating Paris Saint-Germain in the final, Anselmino was then loaned to the Bundesliga club.

At Dortmund he has made nine appearances across all competitions, scoring once in the league and assisting once in the Champions League.

However, injuries have stopped him from playing more at the Westfalenstadion.

His lack of minutes, even if they aren’t the fault of Dortmund, now mean Chelsea have a chance to bring him back to Stamford Bridge.

A ‘previously unknown clause’ was placed into the deal that meant if he hadn’t played enough he could be recalled.

Manager Niko Kovac doesn’t feel this is an issue.

“Everything is settled with Chelsea,” he said a month ago.

“He is our player and I expect him to remain so until the end of the season.”

However, the Blues could still pull off a surprise move and bring him home.

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But European football expert Andy Brassell has insisted doing so would be foolish for Chelsea and the player given his impact in Germany, so far.

“They can [recall him] next month,” he told talkSPORT.com. “It’s mainly been injuries that have affected him so far.

“Given that he’s a very young defender, adapting to first team football and adapting to first team football at an elite club in an overseas country, Anselmino has massively impressed everyone he’s worked with at Dortmund.

“He would be in the first 11 at the moment if he’s fit, particularly with the fact that Ramy Bensebaini is off at the African Cup of Nations with Algeria, of course.

“I think pretty much as soon as he came in the door, I think he’s one of those loan players that you look at. They say never fall in love with a loan player. I think a lot of people at Dortmund have looked at him from early on and thought, yes, this is a guy we’d love to have for a
couple of years.

“Realistically, it’s probably not the case. But if I were Chelsea, I’d leave him where he is. I think you look at the back end of this
season, Dortmund have been knocked out of the DFB-Pokal, but they’re going to progress in the Champions League, either top 8 or top 24. They are going to have a lot of big games to play between now and the end of the season. And he’ll get to play. I don’t have any doubt about that.

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“They’ve been in a position where they’ve had a lot of defensive injuries. Even if we get to January, Bensebaini is still going to be away. Who knows what sort of shape Waldemar Anton and Niklas Süle, who we know is on his way out of the club as well, will be in.

“They played well at the weekend because they had to use [Sule] to fill a space against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Anselmino will get his go. I think someone who’s physical but wants to pass the ball as well. Long-term, I really see him working in the Premier League.

“So I think Chelsea, and maybe him depending on how he feels about it, just need to exercise a little bit of patience here.

“I think if they leave him at Dortmund, he’ll probably play another 15 games before the end of the season.

“Given that he’s a young guy with relatively little experience at the top level, I think that’s a great opportunity for him.

“And to be surrounded by a coaching staff which emphasises physical effort, discipline, covering every blade of grass, which Niko Kovac and his lot are, I think that would be a big asset for him.

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“So obviously Chelsea could call it off. I’m not sure that’s massively to the benefit of the player.”