Sports director Kehl is currently responsible for squad planning at BVB. He is probably mostly satisfied with the team for the second half of the season.Image: www.imago-images.de / RHR-Foto
BVB went on a big shopping spree in the summer: Dortmund paid a total of 91 million euros for ten newcomers. The first half of the season was rather disappointing after that – Borussia was in sixth place during the World Cup break, and BVB is currently seven points behind defending champions Bayern Munich.
Karim Adeyemi was worth 30 million euros to BVB in the summer.Image: dpa / Daniel Gonzalez Acuna
In the current winter transfer window, Julian Ryerson has only been announced as a new signing. The 27-year-old Norwegian from Union Berlin should be a real reinforcement for the right-back. In an interview with Dazn, sports director Sebastian Kehl spoke about the new Borussia player and the prospect of further transfers by the end of the month.
“Incredible mentality and a big heart”: Ryerson debuts against Augsburg
“We’ve been following him for a while,” Kehl admitted after the 4-3 win over Augsburg on Matchday 16. According to reports Ryerson should have joined the Westphalians by the summer at the latest – when his contract with Union had expired.
Ryerson helped the FCU in the European Cup. In the first half of the season he even stormed to the top of the table with the Irons.Image: imago / Panoramic International
However, the “situation with Thomas Meunier” (Kehl) forced the sports director to act: The 31-year-old regular player has been absent since the 11th matchday with a broken cheekbone, after his recovery he tore a muscle fiber directly in the winter training camp in Marbella.
After all, Meunier was able to play the World Cup between a broken cheekbone and a torn muscle fiber.Image: AP / Francisco Seco
Dortmund still had to transfer five million euros to league rivals Union Berlin. A worthwhile investment, Kehl is certain. “He has an incredible mentality and a big heart. He brings many attributes that are very profitable for us“, the BVB boss praises his newcomer.
Ryerson was on the pitch for 90 minutes in the home game against Augsburg. However, the full-back would have preferred a quieter start than the seven-goal spectacle.
“We still have a few days”: Kehl is hoping for departures in the transfer final sprint
In Sunday’s game, Dortmund immediately conceded a goal after both the first and second goals. The defenders in particular received criticism for this. However, Kehl does not necessarily want to react to this in the form of newcomers.
The BVB defense reacted horrified to the third Augsburg goal.Image: AP / Martin Meissner
However, he also admitted to Dazn that he “doesn’t quite know what’s going to happen yet.” In the days before the transfer window closes (January 31), things can move quickly.
First and foremost, BVB would probably like to get rid of one or the other player. “Maybe something else will happen on the tax side,” says sporting director Kehl, revealing his hopes for the transfer final sprint.
In addition to Felix Passlack and Raphaël Guerreiro, whose contracts expire at the end of the season, Dortmund would also be happy to receive offers for Nico Schulz, Emre Can or Thorgen Hazard. So far, no interested parties have come forward. “But we still have a few days left,” says Kehl.
Youssoufa Moukoko let BVB fidget a bit: Sports director Sebastian Kehl actually wanted to make the deal clear at the training camp in Marbella, Spain. But after numerous international clubs had started courting the 18-year-old German national player – and probably also pushed up the price – Moukoko and his agent initially hesitated with the commitment.
