VfB sign Ameen Al-Dakhil

Al-Dakhil, 22, came through the youth ranks at Belgian clubs RSC Anderlecht and Standard Liège. He turned pro with Standard and also played for Sint-Truiden in the Belgian Jupiler Pro League.

In January 2023, the 1.87-metre-tall defender then made the move to Burnley FC in England, where he made 13 appearances in the Premier League and scored one goal. Al-Dakhil made his senior debut for Belgium in summer 2023 and has won four caps to date. A muscle injury forced him to miss the second half of last season, but he has now largely completed his rehab programme and is set to be integrated into full training at VfB shortly.

“Ameen has very good attributes to become an important part of our defence,” said VfB board member for sport Fabian Wohlgemuth. “He went to England from the Belgian league and proved his qualities in the Premier League. The call-ups to the Belgian national team also speak for themselves. Despite his relatively young age, Ameen has already gained quite a lot of experience, but at the same time he has the potential to develop further. We are very happy to have tied a player of such quality to VfB for the long term.”

Al-Dakhil commented: “I’m really happy to be here and to become part of the VfB family. I want to experience the atmosphere in the stadium and walk out in front of these special fans. I’m looking forward to the big challenge of playing in the Bundesliga.”