Bologna have officially confirmed the arrival of 23-year-old striker Thijs Dallinga on a permanent deal from Ligue 1 side Marseille, following the departure of Dutchman Joshua Zirkzee to Manchester United earlier this month.
The Rossoblu have reportedly paid a fee in the region of €15m for Dallinga’s services, according to outlets in Italy, including calciomercato.com.
The former Excelsior forward has put pen to paper on a five year contract, running until the summer of 2029. He will reportedly take home an annual salary of €1.6m.
The promising centre-forward arrived in Italy for his medical on Monday and completed the final formalities of his transfer on Tuesday morning.
Dallinga becomes the eighth Dutchman to represent Bologna in the club’s history.
He also comes in off the back of an impressive few years, scoring 73 goals in all competitions over the past three seasons in France and the Netherlands.
Bologna officially announce Dallinga
“Both a finisher and a classic striker, having literally devoured the Dutch Serie B with Excelsior at the age of 21 (top scorer with 36 goals, voted the best player in the division and promoted to the Eredivisie), he was bought by Toulouse in Ligue 1, and in his debut year, he led the team to their first major title, the Coupe de France, in which he scored six goals in six appearances,” Bologna wrote in an official statement on the club website.
“In his second term with the Viola, he increased his league goals tally and begun to pick up international recognition. Called up by the Netherlands senior team, he made his debut against Gibraltar while playing in the Europa League with his club, where he scored four goals in eight games, including two against Liverpool.”
Bologna and Dallinga will get their first Serie A match of the 2024-25 season underway at home, at the Dell’Ara, facing Udinese on August 18.
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Zirkzee was v.bad during his first season at Bologna. But with tranquility and no pressure, they allowed him the space and time to rediscover his confidence and his true worth. Dallinga won’t be afforded such luxuries. Bologna are paying a big fee, are in the champions league and have also changed coaches. So the pressure will be on him from the off to deliver. The positive though is that he looked a far more well rounded player than Zirkzee even if not as technically gifted.