Kerim Alajbegovic: €40m Transfer Without Playing for Leverkusen
The World Cup contingent was back at Bayer Leverkusen on Monday, easing into pre-season after a long summer. One of them, though, was treated like fine crystal.
Kerim Alajbegovic trained only in carefully controlled doses. Not because of fitness issues. Because of money. A lot of it.
Leverkusen simply cannot afford for their record sale to twist an ankle now.
“We’ll have him back on Monday,” sporting director Simon Rolfes told Bild before the session, making it clear the 18-year-old Bosnian would be present. But probably not for long. Inside the club, few expect him to stay. His multi-million euro move, after a full-blown bidding war, is widely regarded as a done deal in all but signature.
A Record in the Making
Chelsea were the first to slam a serious offer on the table. According to Bild, the London club put forward €40 million for the attacking midfielder. That figure hits Leverkusen’s valuation and rips up the Bundesliga record books: no German top-flight club has ever bought or sold an under-19 player for that kind of money.
The previous mark? Renato Sanches, when Bayern Munich paid Benfica around €35m back in 2016.
The twist this time is almost absurd. Leverkusen are about to bank a record fee for a player who has not played a single professional minute for them. Not one.
They are not losing a cornerstone of Xabi Alonso’s title-winning side. They are cashing in on a prospect. A plan. A projection of what might be.
“Kerim has made an incredible development. He is extremely ambitious and has developed astonishingly quickly,” Rolfes told Sport1, and the numbers around him now underline that point more loudly than any academy report ever could.
From Salzburg Bet to Bundesliga Goldmine
This was not an accident. It was a calculated gamble that paid out faster than anyone expected.
Last summer, Leverkusen allowed Alajbegovic to leave their academy setup for Red Bull Salzburg. The Austrians paid €2m, but Leverkusen protected themselves with an €8m buy-back clause. It was a safety net. Within six months, it became a no-brainer.
Alajbegovic lit up Salzburg, even if the start was rocky. “At the beginning it was difficult: I was in a hotel for a month and a half, so I was very alone,” he admitted to the club’s media. Once he settled, the football followed.
By the end of the season, he had 13 goals and four assists in 44 competitive games. For an 18-year-old attacking midfielder in a new country, that output commands attention. His own verdict was clear: “It was the best decision to come here.” He talked about growing as a player and as a person, and he pointed to one specific change: a temper tamed.
“I am someone who really hates losing. I really hate it. Sometimes I become very aggressive – and I was then also taught that I should stay calm.”
That emotional growth, coupled with ruthless end product, forced Leverkusen’s hand. They triggered the buy-back. Within half a year, the boy they had let go for €2m was back for €8m, returning as a World Cup player and one of Europe’s most coveted teenagers.
From “Still a Boy” to World Cup Stage
“Before I came to Salzburg, I was still a boy,” Alajbegovic admitted. That line sounds almost cliché until you look at what came next.
His performances in Austria pushed him onto the radar of clubs across the continent. At the same time, his rise with Bosnia’s national team added an extra layer of shine. He became the youngest debutant in his country’s history and did not stop there.
In the World Cup play-offs, he played a decisive role in Bosnia’s wins against Wales and Italy. On the biggest stage of all, he produced a standout moment with a stunning goal against Qatar, the kind of strike that travels fast across scouting departments.
“He has exceptional shooting technique, also from outside the box. That really makes him special,” Rolfes said. You can see why the big clubs took note.
This week, that “boy” walked back through the doors at Leverkusen as something else entirely: a full international, a World Cup scorer, and the centre of a transfer storm worth up to €40m.
Alonso, Chelsea and a Complication
Chelsea’s interest is no mystery. Xabi Alonso, now in charge at Stamford Bridge, knows Alajbegovic inside out from their time together in Leverkusen. Under the Spaniard, the youngster made several matchday squads, though he never actually got on the pitch. No cameo, no late run-out, nothing.
Still, Alonso has clearly kept him in mind. Chelsea’s reported €40m offer shows how highly they rate his potential.
Yet just as that move seemed to gather pace, a new obstacle appeared in west London. Chelsea have already brought in Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa for the same attacking midfield role, in a deal worth €127m. That kind of outlay changes any depth chart.
Alajbegovic is now said to be scrutinising Chelsea’s plan for him. The scenario on offer includes an immediate loan to another club, potentially Racing Strasbourg, who, like Chelsea, are part of the Blue Group structure. According to media reports, that kind of instant loan move was something he had previously ruled out.
The project matters to him as much as the badge.
Juventus Step In
That hesitation opened the door. Juventus walked straight through it.
In recent days, the Italian giants have surged to the front of the queue. Reports in Italy suggest the “Old Lady” now lead the race for his signature, and Sky even speaks of an agreement between all parties.
The framework is clear: a basic fee of €33m, topped up by bonuses that would push the total package to the €40m Chelsea were prepared to pay. For Leverkusen, the financial outcome remains the same. For Alajbegovic, the sporting picture looks very different.
Juventus are said to have hammered home one key point in talks: they see him in the starting XI straight away. Not as a project for tomorrow. As a piece for today. That message has already been delivered to the player personally, according to Sky, with only final details left before any official announcement.
Whether it ends up being Chelsea, Juventus or a late entrant into this transfer poker, one reality is already locked in.
The Bundesliga is about to witness a record transfer for a teenager who never played a minute for his club. The only question left is whose colours Kerim Alajbegovic will be wearing when he starts to justify every cent.
