German side Borussia Dortmund have signed Sebastien Haller from Eredivisie side AFC Ajax in a deal worth €34.5 million (£29m/$35m). The Ivory Coast international leaves Ajax after a one-and-a-half year successful spell at the club. He is now trusted to replace Erling Haaland at the pinnacle of the Dortmund attack. Haaland made a move to Manchester City at the beginning of the transfer window. Haller scored an impressive 34 goals in 42 appearances in all competitions last term, including 11 in the Champions League - a figure bested only by Karim Benzema and Robert Lewandowski. Dortmund are now expected to pay £31million (£26m/$32m) up front for the Ivory Coast international, Ajax has confirmed. The German side, however, may end up paying an additional £3.5million (£3m/$4m) in bonuses.

Haller will now be tied to Borussia Dortmund up to 2026 as he has signed a four-year contract with the club. The striker had this to say on Dortmund's website; "The stadium is great, but the greatest stadium is nothing without its fans. As part of the BVB family, I can't wait to feel the support of more than 80,000 spectators in the future. We’ll hopefully achieve great things together in the next few years and be able to celebrate together too." BVB's sporting director Sebastian Kehl had this to say of their new signing; "We’re very pleased to have been able to sign Sebastien Haller – a seasoned center-forward who has recently caused a sensation in the Champions League, but who also knows the Bundesliga in particular and has already demonstrated his class and high-quality finishing there. The overall package is very promising. Sebastien possesses a strong physical presence and he is physically very resilient. With his experience, he can also offer support and stability to our young attacking players. During the talks with us, he made it clear that he has big ambitions with BVB." 

Dortmund finished as Bundesliga runners-up and they have been busy in the transfer market during this window. Haller becomes the second forward to get to the Signal Iduna Park after Karim Adeyemi from Red Bull Salzburg for £38million (£32.5m/$40m). Niklas Sule from Bayern Munich and Nico Schlotterbeck from Freiburg also signed as center-backs. BVB's midfield was reinforced by the arrival of Salih Ozcan while goalkeepers Alexander Meyer and Marcel Lotka have also joined the club.