Sunderland make £8.5m demand as Bellingham talks with Dortmund reach deadlock

Borussia Dortmund want to sign Sunderland midfield starlet Jobe Bellingham before the Club World Cup and the two clubs remain in negotiations for the player, who has agreed a five-year deal with BVB

Borussia Dortmund have been told they must up their bid by £8.5million to strike a deal with Sunderland for Jobe Bellingham. The 19-year-old midfield starlet has already agreed to join the German giants on a five-year contract but they are yet to shake hands on a transfer with the Black Cats.

It's understood Bellingham's release clause is currently set at £33.7m (€40m) but Dortmund are not currently willing to reach that figure and have instead communicated they would be willing to propose a £25.2m (€30m) package.

The offer would be worth £21m upfront with a further £4.2m in achievable add-ons but Sunderland want the buy-out clause met in full before they sanction the move. German sources have indicated BVB's first official bid was worth around £21m all in and was swiftly rejected.

Dortmund were of the belief that Bellingham could leave Sunderland for £25.2m (€30m) due to an alleged gentleman's agreement between the player and his current club but they now face a race against the clock to get a move over the line before the Club World Cup. Championship play-off winner Bellingham was named in Lee Carsley's England U21 squad for the European Championships on Friday.

However, if Dortmund thrash out a deal before Tuesday's transfer deadline, they would hold all the cards and could take Bellingham to the Club World Cup should they wish as per FIFA rules, clubs are not obliged to release players for the U21 Euros. Liam Delap will be travelling to the United States with Chelsea after he sealed a £30m move from Ipswich Town earlier this week.

Carsley claimed on Friday that Bellingham would currently be travelling to Slovakia with the Three Lions, explaining: “The FIFA window closes on the 10th of June, so we just have to make sure that we're flexible, similar to what we've done with all of the players. We're here to support them, make sure we help them as much as we can. Jobe is an important part of our squad and will be travelling with us.”

The England U21 boss will be allowed to make changes to his squad right up until his side's tournament opener against Czechia in Dunajska Streda next Thursday.

Dortmund have been pushing hard to reach an agreement with Bellingham since the end of the season despite rival interest from fellow German side Eintracht Frankfurt. In early May, BVB officials Lars Ricken and Sebastian Kehl plus head coach Niko Kovac flew to the North East for discussions with the player.

Departing CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke also flew to England to meet the Bellingham family before later jetting to Ibiza, where Bellingham was on holiday, for a final round of talks that look to have swung the balance.