Julian Duranville Can Fly For Dortmund

Seen as arguably one of Belgium’s brightest, future talents, Julien Duranville, is yet to be really unleashed for Borussia Dortmund.

Having come through Anderlecht’s fabled academy, which raised Jeremy Doku, Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemens, Duranville made his move to Dortmund in January 2023.

Now 19 and after a handful of games, there are hopes that the player can enjoy a breakthrough season this campaign and is one of the promising stars of the Bundesliga.

While he has 12 games under his belt already this term, he is yet to register any goals or assists and still appears to be gelling. Despite this, his talent is obvious.

However, the club’s reputation for developing natural talent has become second-to-none over the last few years – Jadon Sancho, Claudio Reyna and of course Jamie Gittens, who has just moved to Chelsea.

For sure, Dortmund are well-stocked in attack, with some great talent, though Duranville could aim to follow the same trajectory as Karim Adeyimi in the team, who took a couple of seasons to really get going.

Skills To Excel

An explosive winger who operates primarily on the right flank, though enjoys cutting inside, finding pockets of space to thread a pass, Duranville’s low centre of gravity makes it hard for opponents to mark him in one-on-one situations.

However, he is not what you would call an ‘inverted winger’ or ‘inside forward’ – he very much prefers his right foot for the final delivery, of which he has improved on over the last year.

Following Gittens’ lucrative move to Chelsea this summer, there could well be a vacancy on the wing and Duranville certainly has the talent to step into this berth and make it his own.

Boasting a combination of raw pace, flair and tactical awareness, he fits modern counter-attacking systems perfectly and, with Dortmund boasting a handful of attacking players with this trait in their locker, Duranville could make up a lethal quadrant of players in these roles.

Fitness Key For Success

The key issue surrounding Duranville’s ability to deliver is whether he can maintain his fitness. If he is able to stay fit and follows the right training and recovery schedule then there is no reason why he can’t keep developing and getting better.

Gittens is a prime example of someone who did just that – arguably, he only needed last season to really break through, with some dazzling performances in the Bundesliga and Champions League.

Duranville is also part of a crop of highly talented new post-Golden Generation phase for Belgium and the player could become somewhat of a ‘poster boy’ for his national team’s new transition.

While a move in time, will more than likely materialise – especially if he hits heights similar to that of Gittens from a creative and goalscoring output for Dortmund.

So, this season is certainly a key one for Duranville and, should he get on the scoresheet soon, this will do wonders for his confidence and it could well be the start of a great campaign. Ultimately, watch this space.