Ba's Rapid Rise: From Winter Player to Key Defender in Portugal
Ba’s rise from winter squad player to one of the most-watched defenders in Portugal has been sharp, and it has not gone unnoticed in Germany.
The Senegalese centre-back has forced his way into the starting XI of a side sitting fifth in the Portuguese league, turning a mid-season opportunity into a permanent role. Since the winter break he has become a fixture at the back, racking up 19 league appearances, two goals and an assist, with 26 senior games in all competitions this season.
One of those moments already carries the weight of a turning point. In mid-March, Ba climbed highest to score a late, much-celebrated winner in a 1-0 victory over CD Nacional, a result that underlined both his aerial presence and his growing importance. It was the type of performance that tends to travel quickly across scouting networks.
His own journey has moved just as fast. Loaned from Senegalese club AJEL Rufisque to FC Valenciennes in 2023, Ba made the step to Famalicão on a free transfer a year later. The Portuguese club moved decisively to protect their asset, tying him down to a contract that runs until 2030. Even that long-term deal has not cooled interest. Portuguese outlet Record reports that Sporting CP, fresh from reaching the Champions League quarter-finals, are closely tracking the defender.
Ba is not the only young talent in Portugal drawing glances from Borussia Dortmund’s recruitment team. According to Maisfutebol, 20-year-old Bastien Meupiyou of CD Alverca is also on the list. The Frenchman, under contract until 2028, offers another athletic, modern profile in the heart of defence and sits firmly in the same age bracket Dortmund traditionally target.
The Bundesliga club have already taken one major decision at the back. Nico Schlotterbeck’s recent contract extension settled a key part of their long-term defensive structure. Yet the expected free-transfer departure of Niklas Süle this summer opens up another slot in central defence and pushes the search for reinforcements up the agenda.
That search stretches beyond Portugal. Marcos Senesi, the 28-year-old left-footed defender at AFC Bournemouth, has been linked with a move to Dortmund, bringing with him Premier League experience and a more established profile. There is also a more sentimental name in the frame: Aron Anselmino, once part of Dortmund’s youth setup and now on loan at Racing Strasbourg from Chelsea.
Anselmino’s situation is being watched closely from Germany. Speaking before Friday’s Bundesliga clash with Bayer Leverkusen, Dortmund head coach Niko Kovac made no secret of his interest in the Argentine’s development. “Sometimes I check how Strasbourg have played or whether he’s even featured. That’s quite normal. It does pain me, though, that he doesn’t play as often as he used to, or as often as he would have done with us,” Kovac admitted.
Between Ba’s surge in Portugal, Meupiyou’s emergence, Senesi’s experience and the Anselmino subplot, Dortmund’s defensive rebuild is clearly under way. The only real question now is which of these names will be wearing yellow and black when Süle walks away in the summer.
