Felix Nmecha: who is Borussia Dortmund's all-action midfielder who developed at Manchester City?
The midfield dynamo is earning praise for his performances as he settles in his second season at the Signal Iduna Park. After developing under Pep Guardiola and gaining the chance to add to his first Germany cap, the younger Nmecha brother may be on his way to fulfilling his great potential.
bundesliga.com puts the Hamburg-born footballing technician under the spotlight...
Stats correct as of 8 November 2024
Age: 24 (10 October 2000)
Club: Borussia Dortmund
Position: Midfield
Country: Germany (one cap)
Key stats
The son of a German mother and a Nigerian father, Nmecha - and his older brother Lukas - was born in Hamburg but moved to England with his family in 2007. After honing their skills in the Hamburg borough of Altona, the switch to Manchester brought the young Nmechas to the attention of Premier League team Manchester City. Both went on to join the club's academy.
Current City coach Pep Guardiola called the younger of the Nmecha brothers into the senior squad for the UEFA Champions League encounter against Hoffenheim in December 2018, and a senior City bow wouldn't be long in arriving. Just one month later the talented midfielder was brought on as a second-half substitute in the 2-1 EFL Cup semi-final second-leg victory against Burton Albion.
A lengthy wait for the player's next game under Guardiola followed, but he celebrated it with an assist for former Bayern Munich full-back Joao Cancelo in a 3-0 City victory against Olympiacos in the Champions League in November 2020.
In total Nmecha made just three appearances for City - a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a knee injury not helping his prospects. After his contract with the club expired in June 2021, Nmecha junior joined his older brother Lukas at Wolfsburg.
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The 22-year-old sought to find his feet in his first season at the Volkswagen Arena, playing 16 Bundesliga games under Mark van Bommel and Florian Kohfeldt. It was in the 2022/23 campaign that the attacking midfielder took off, however, becoming a key part of the Wolfsburg team that finished eighth.
Racking up 30 Bundesliga appearances throughout the season, Nmecha registered his first Bundesliga goals with a double in Wolfsburg's 4-0 win against Bochum in October 2022. He also recorded five top-flight assists in what turned out to be a campaign to remember for the young Wolf. Nmecha was called up by his country for the first time as a result of his good form at club level, and played 58 minutes on his Germany debut against Belgium in March 2023.
A summer 2023 switch to Dortmund followed and while injury limited him to 10 starts in his first Bundesliga season in 2023/24, he began to carve a regular spot in 2024/25 - starting seven of their first 14 matches in all competitions and particularly impressing in a 2-1 win at home to Leipzig on Matchday 9 - heading to assist Maximilian Beier's equaliser. His form earned him his first Germany call-up in over a year in November 2024.
Plays a bit like: Leon Goretzka
Dortmund signed Felix Nmecha perhaps hoping he could step in the footsteps of the departed Jude Bellingham but while he is an equally versatile midfield operator, it would be unfair to have expected him to instantly fill such a sizeable hole. Bayern Munich's burly box-to-box operator provides a decent comparison for Nmecha's well-rounded skill set - while his long service for a leading Bundesliga light and the German national team is something the Dortmund man has every right to aspire to.
Watch: Nmecha's goalscoring double for Wolfsburg in 2022/23
Did you know?
Like his brother Lukas, Felix represented both England and Germany at youth level. The younger Nmecha made a total of nine appearances while scoring two goals with England's U16s, U18s and U19s. He also featured for Germany's U18s and U21s in the past, and scored against England for Germany in an U21 friendly in Sheffield in September 2022.
What they're saying
"He has to take the next step, which is understanding when he can take risks. Then we would have a really top player for the years to come. He can play in defensive midfield, in the middle or as a number 10. Those are the kind of midfielders you dream of." - Dortmund coach Nuri Şahin after Nmecha's standout showing against Leipzig in November 2024.
"Felix Nmecha is a fast, technically adept and physically strong player who will enhance our midfield both offensively and defensively with his profile." - Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl.
"You always [dream] of these moments when you’re younger. Especially so with Lukas, when we were playing together on the streets in Germany. And now to be in the Bundesliga together it's amazing. It's a really great feeling.” – Felix on what it was like to be teammates with his brother in Germany's top division.
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