Next year, Dan-Axel Zagadou will mark a small anniversary. In the summer of 2027, it will be ten years since he moved to Germany. The now 27-year-old joined Borussia Dortmund at the time on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain's second team.
On paper, the centre-back, who joined VfB Stuttgart in 2022 and is under contract there until the end of the season, could have played 306 matches across those nine Bundesliga seasons. Instead, Zagadou has made just 108 top-flight appearances. Injuries ruled him out of almost 180 games. And there is more to come: on Tuesday, the Swabians announced that Zagadou had suffered a muscular injury to the back of his thigh and will be out for the coming weeks.
Filippo Mane is not quite at that level, at least not yet. But in one respect, the Italian at BVB could already pass as Zagadou's successor when it comes to being injury-prone. Since moving to the Westphalians' youth set-up at the beginning of January 2022, Mane has racked up almost 500 days out and has already missed more than 75 matches.
Getty ImagesFilippo Mane is the winner of BVB's pre-season
Now, though, like Zagadou in Stuttgart until recently, the 21-year-old has once again reached a stable phase. That gives both player and club fresh hope that things will finally keep moving in the right direction and that another injury will not follow any time soon. Because if that really is the case over a longer period, then the centre-back undoubtedly has the potential for more.
"We were and still are absolutely convinced of his abilities," sporting managing director Lars Ricken said on Sunday after the 3-2 friendly win at Arsenal about Mane, to whom he attested an "outstanding game" in London. "It was always only a question of whether he can stay injury-free for long enough. Then we will all see what quality he has," the 50-year-old is convinced.
These days, Mane is certainly regarded as one of the winners of BVB's pre-season. Even so, there was a scare for him only recently. In the 1-0 defeat against Cerezo Osaka, he had to go off injured and then missed the following game against FC Tokyo (1-0).
Getty"Making progress": Filippo Mane overtakes Luca Reggiani at BVB
As at the same stage last year, the door to the first team is once again slightly open for Mane. With Nico Schlotterbeck out with an ankle injury and Emre Can in rehab after a cruciate ligament tear, the "classic Italian man-marker" (Ricken) has moved closer to the team and picked up plenty of minutes in pre-season.
Across his five appearances so far, he has pushed his case with uncompromising tackling and good build-up play. By all appearances, he has also moved back ahead of compatriot Luca Reggiani, who had overtaken him in the pecking order in the second half of last season. At the start of the season, the back three of Waldemar Anton, new signing Joane Gadou and Ramy Bensebaini will pick itself, but as things stand Mane is the first alternative to that trio.
"You can certainly still improve one thing or another," coach Niko Kovac said at the weekend, "but Filippo is making progress. That is down to his diligence. We have adjusted things with him. We know what problems he had. We have improved that over the past weeks and months. If he remains so consistent physically, then he will certainly be a good player for us."
Getty ImagesNiko Kovac praises Filippo Mane after win against Arsenal
Kovac, too, felt Mane produced "a really good game", especially alongside Gadou and the experienced Bensebaini, who repeatedly guided the youngsters well. "The three centre-backs cleared up very well. Filippo, but Joane too. That is real force, real power. They are quick, they are aggressive and tenacious, and very strong one-on-one."
Last season, Mane made six competitive appearances for the first team and, curiously, he benefited then as well from the absences of Schlotterbeck and Can. He made his debut in the DFB Cup at Rot-Weiss Essen. Shortly afterwards, he was in the starting line-up for a Bundesliga game for the first time.
Then came the blow. With the score at 3-1 against FC St. Pauli shortly before the end, Mane saw red and gave away an unnecessary penalty. Dortmund eventually drew 3-3. Chance gone, and afterwards the two-time youth international disappeared from view for months.
Getty ImagesFilippo Mane highlights a problem for BVB
After that, he made 11 more appearances for the U23s in the Regionalliga. He even scored three goals, Mane's first goals in professional football. But at the beginning of February, it was the same old story again: a muscle injury that cost him a good two months.
His case also shows how problematic the second team's relegation to the fourth tier is for BVB. Mane has to play, finally, and play a lot. Unless a miracle happens, that will not be possible with the first team. But he also needs minutes at a level above the fourth division if he is really to make progress.
Getty ImagesWhat next for Filippo Mane at BVB?
So what about a loan move? "We are under no pressure there," Ricken said soothingly. "We will assess the situation on a case-by-case basis when the transfer window nears its end."
Right now, the likely outcome is that they keep Mane. Options at the back are still thin for the time being, he has impressed recently and he has overtaken Reggiani. But whether that will allow him to make the long-awaited next step in his development remains, at the very least, questionable.
Filippo Mane: his time at BVB at a glance
Team | Games | Goals | Assists |
Borussia Dortmund U17 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Borussia Dortmund U19 | 46 | 2 | 2 |
Borussia Dortmund U23 | 17 | 3 | 0 |
Borussia Dortmund | 6 | 0 | 0 |