Yahoo Sports Bundesliga Signing to Watch | Yan Couto (Borussia Dortmund)
Bundesliga clubs have been busy this summer and with the season fast approaching, and at Get German Football News we have decided to look at five signings from this summer you should watch out for, with Borussia Dortmund’s Yan Couto making the list.
Escaping City Football Group
Officially, Couto joins Borussia Dortmund from Manchester City on loan with an obligation to buy, however, the Brazilian has never been involved with City in training or ever played a game for the club.
The 22-year-old has predominantly made his name at City Football Group club Girona where he excelled as the club qualified for the Champions League last season. During his 34 games in La Liga, Couto scored once and assisted eight times. The Brazilian is versatile and can play anywhere on the right-hand side.
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Despite playing most of his football at right-back, Yan Couto can play anywhere on the right-hand side depending on the style of play his team are looking to employ.
Never one to be subtle, Couto will never hesitate to get stuck in or even wind up a group of opposition fans. Even if the pink hair is gone, when Yan Couto is on the pitch he will make his presence known – Ciaran Currie.
How does he fit in at Borussia Dortmund?
Right-back has been a problem for Dortmund since Lukas Piszczek’s decline as well as the end of the loan of Achraf Hakimi back in 2020. Last season the club had to play with either Marius Wolf or Julian Ryerson on the right, the latter showed how he is a reliable option but has a ceiling to his ability.
Couto showed at Girona that he is a very good attacking option at right-back especially when it comes to carrying the ball forward. Which, should be beneficial to Dortmund as under new head coach Nuri Sahin they are expected to play a more attacking style of play. Couto will also likely benefit more from having better players around him with Serhou Guirassy able to react to the end of his crosses once he is fit.
However, Couto is not as defensively sound as Ryerson. The Norwegian is better than his Brazilian teammate in every statistic, but it is also worth noting that Dortmund did adopt a much more defensive structure under Edin Terzic last season. The positive for Couto is that he will have Waldemar Anton, Nico Schlotterbeck and even Niklas Süle behind him to provide cover.
For Dortmund, Couto is clearly one of the smartest signings that Die Schwarzgelben have made this summer as it fixes a position that has been an issue for several years. For the 22-year-old, the bar is very low for him to be considered a success compared to his predecessors.
GGFN | Jack Meenan
