Football
Stephan Uersfeld, Germany correspondent 8y

Mats Hummels Germany's best centre-back - Dortmund CEO Watzke

Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has told Sport1 the club's former captain Mats Hummels is Germany's best centre-back.

Watzke said Hummels, who joined Bayern Munich in the summer, is a "more complete" player than club and international teammate Jerome Boateng.

Hummels spent more than eight years at the Westfalenstadion before returning to his hometown club.

And Watzke said Dortmund knew they would not be able to find a similar player to replace Hummels because "we can't afford it."

"For me, Mats Hummels remains the best defender in Germany because he's the most complete," he added. "I see him ahead of Jerome Boateng, but it's an open race."

Following the announcement of Hummels' departure, BVB signed Marc Bartra from Barcelona -- and the 25-year-old has already shown that he can help the team compensate the loss of their skipper.

But Watzke added: "You can't replace Hummels one-on-one. You can only replace him when you sign a player who might have the potential to one day reach his level.

"But we can't afford to sign someone who is already at that level."

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