Mats Hummels says 'move would be good for me'. So what changed?

Last September, Hummels insisted that he was happy at the Bundesliga side, saying that "we earn enough here" and that he and girlfriend Cathy did not want to swap Germany for anywhere else.

Fast forward six months, however, and the World Cup-winning defender is singing a very different tune: "Basically, I think moving abroad will be good for my professional and personal wellbeing," he told Kicker magazine in Germany.

"Eventually, I'd like to leave the Bundesliga.

"I'm being open about this because I'm not a fan of those who claim they are staying but, behind the scenes, have actually secretly agreed a transfer away from their current club."

[WHAT HE SAID IN SEPTEMBER: Mats Hummels chooses love over money, and United]

Putting aside the intrigue of who Hummels was referring to with that last comment, his statements clearly suggest that he and his agent are already in negotiations with Manchester United - and possibly several other clubs as well, given that Arsenal, Manchester City, Barcelona and Real Madrid have also been linked with the £35m-rated defender.

Hummels, who at 26 is at his prime, faces the prospect of missing out on European competition next season; Dortmund have improved hugely since their awful start to the season, but still sit in 10th place with just a handful of matches left, and a Champions League berth seems impossible.

With that in mind, Hummels has clearly decided to look elsewhere - even though it's clear from his words that he still loves his life as it is.

"Some days I think I would definitely like to move abroad but then, other days, I think I don't fancy it at all," he added.

"I will do what is best for my career and what I would like to do. Everyone knows how much I love it at Dortmund but I also want to make sure I'm part of a strong team with powerful players."

When Hummels insisted in September that he did not want to move, we had huge respect for him. In January, he reiterated that he "is not known as a globetrotter" and added that "loyalty is important to me". He has also said that he is already paid plenty of money, and that he doesn't need to earn any more.

So what has changed? It's that European issue. 12 points adrift of fourth-placed Bayer Leverkusen with just eight matches left of the season, there is almost no prospect of Borussia Dortmund qualifying for the Champions League. And while Hummels' current £100,000-a-week deal is indeed more than enough to set him up for life, all elite-level footballers crave Champions League football. He already has the Bundesliga winners' medals, World Cup winners' medal and a Champions League runners-up medal - can he face a season without being in Europe's elite competition?

It seems not. And transfer window or not, this is the point of the season at which big summer transfers are made or broken. The only thing that now feels odd to us is that he'll be able to chase his dreams of glory at Manchester United - a team whose medium-term prospects looked no better than Dortmund's seven or eight months ago.