BVB and FC Bayern are fighting over Edson Alvarez from Ajax: More Can than Bellingham

According to the Dutch newspaper telegraph the two Bundesliga title rivals want to get in touch with Ajax in this regard. sky meanwhile reports that talks between Álvarez and BVB have already taken place. Loud sports1 there was also contact with FC Bayern.

The 25-year-old, who is said to be available for €35m to €50m, has been at Ajax since 2019 and joined the Dutch record champions for a fee of €15m at the time. A homegrown talent at Club América, a club based in Mexico City, he has played there since the U17s.

Álvarez is primarily a defensive midfielder, but he can also play in central defence. Due to his height of 1.87 meters, he naturally has a certain headball strength.

SPOX and GOAL introduce the Mexican international and clarify whether he is actually a player who could specifically help BVB.

Edson Álvarez has an aggressive style of play

In the Netherlands, Álvarez is known for his duel toughness and aggressiveness. He always goes ahead and tries to put his opponents under pressure. However, this always results in fouls and many yellow cards. In the current season there were already ten in just 28 games.

As a result, Álvarez was recently suspended in the top game against PSV Eindhoven (0-3). However, it was his third yellow card suspension of the season – he had already missed Ajax’s first game of the season due to a yellow card suspension from the end of the previous season.

Edson Álvarez: strengths and weaknesses

The positives first: Álvarez has a strong professional attitude, always gives his all and is very reliable. He is rarely injured and has only missed one game this season through injury – in the second round of the Cup against FC Den Bosch in January. In addition, he is considered a leader on the field, a quality that would probably be good for BVB, where the discussion about leading players often comes up.

However, Álvarez also tends to be overly motivated to work. In the game against AZ Alkmaar, for example he headbutted an opponent behind the referee. The Mexican was lucky that the video assistant didn’t intervene despite the TV pictures and he was allowed to stay on the pitch.

In addition, Álvarez made no friends in the cup final against Eindhoven his rather arrogantly shot penalty in a penalty shoot-out. He shot low and weakly in the middle, the goalkeeper saved easily and immediately afterwards the decisive penalty for PSV came. Ajax lost a possible title this season – in the Eredivise they already had no chance against the now established champions Feyenoord.

Edson Álvarez: Is he the Bellingham successor?

The sparrows whistle it from the rooftops that Jude Bellingham will leave Borussia Dortmund at the end of the season. This is not yet certain, but the rumor mill says that Álvarez is being traded as his possible successor at BVB. The question that inevitably arises is whether the Mexican has what it takes to follow the England international.

“It’s difficult to be Álvarez as a possible successor to Bellingham because, to be honest, Álvarez is a much more defensive player, while Bellingham likes to go forward and into the penalty area,” says Dutch journalist Rian Rosendaal VoetbalZone. “Álvarez has only scored four goals this season, while Bellingham has 14.” Rosendaal therefore compares the 25-year-old more with another BVB player: “Álvarez is more of a player of the Emre Can type.”

Edson Álvarez: Is the Mexican ready for a move to a top European club?

Edson Álvarez is considered a leading player at Ajax, which usually has a very young team. But apart from that, he has shown great personal maturity in the current season after a planned move by the defensive player to Chelsea for a reported 50 million euros fell through last summer. His former Ajax coach Alfred Schreuder explicitly praised him for his professional attitude despite this personal setback.

Another indication of his professionalism is also his willingness to play a different position under his current Ajax coach, John Heitinga, and to do it as well as he can. While he usually played in front of the defense on the six, most recently he was mostly in demand as a central defender and did his job there at least properly.

Álvarez himself hinted last summer that he was ready for a new adventure in Europe. However, a few Dutch experts see things differently. One who positioned himself particularly clearly is the journalist Valentijn Driessen von De Telegraaf. He called Álvarez the “most overrated footballer in the Netherlands, which also doesn’t belong to Ajax”. Driessen added: “I counted a bit against AZ in the first half: he gave away six balls. He shot them away, headed them away or passed them on to AZ players.”

The fact that both Schreuder and Heitinga are backing the Mexican only allowed one conclusion for Driessen: “That says everything about these coaches, they don’t know much about it either.”

And Driessen isn’t convinced of his defensive qualities either: “He just can’t defend properly. It’s always a foul, or a kick here and a shove there.”

Edson Álvarez: Is he one for BVB?

However, Driessen’s opinion is not one that can be regarded as universally valid. The majority of Dutch experts see the Mexican as one of the best players in the Eredivisie. However, it seems doubtful whether it should be the direct successor to Bellingham. However, BVB not only need a likely successor for Bellingham, but possibly also in defense for Mats Hummels, who could leave the club after his contract expires in the summer.

It also seems conceivable that Álvarez will be seen as Can’s successor and could initially act as a backup for defensive midfield and defence. He would definitely be one for BVB, even if not in the Bellingham role.

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