Bundesliga
Haller’s premiere on World Cancer Day – BVB back in the title race
“I’ve been waiting for this since day one,” said Sébastien Haller (r) after his goal against Freiburg. photo
© Bernd Thissen/dpa
Four games, four wins – BVB’s race to catch up continues. The 5-1 win against Freiburg raises hopes of an exciting title fight – as does Sébastien Haller’s goosebumps goal.
For a brief moment, his fellow players left the big stage to him alone. Goalscorer Sébastien Haller stood in front of the trembling Dortmund south stand with outstretched arms and a lot of humility in his eyes – inspired by the ovations of the fans. Only a little later did the teammates take him into their midst and enjoy the magic of the moment together with him.
His first goal (51st) for BVB just a few months after his cancer surgery and chemotherapy was very close to the 28-year-old’s 5-1 (1-1) win over SC Freiburg: “I’ve been waiting for it since day one. You’re floating on a cloud. Not only the stadium, but also my teammates were on fire.”
Dortmund’s Haller: “I’m happy”
Nico Schlotterbeck reacted similarly emotionally to the football fairy tale about Haller, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer last summer. “I had goosebumps all over my body. I would have been next to him for the goal celebration, but I left him alone because it was something big for him.”
The Ivorian international took advantage of the spotlight on World Cancer Day, pointing to his shoe with the words ‘Fuck Cancer’ written on it: “It means a lot to me to score the goal on that date. I am happy and I hope I made a lot of other people happy,” he enthused. “You couldn’t have written this story better,” said sports director Sebastian Kehl at Sky.
When the main actor of the game was substituted just ten minutes after his lucky header, another hurricane swept through the largest Bundesliga stadium. Inspired by the good atmosphere, Haller wanted more: “It gives me a boost. I’m hoping for more goals.”
Not only the successful comeback of the goalscorer, but also the fantastic performance of the entire team put the fans in a euphoric mood like they hadn’t for a long time. After four wins in the last four games and the jump to third place, there were even “champion” chants from the ranks again.
Benefiting from the early dismissal of Kiliann Sildillia from Freiburg (17th), Borussia got into a frenzy and scored more goals from Schlotterbeck (26th), Karim Adeyemi (48th), Julian Brandt (69th) and Giovanni Reyna ( 82.) to a resounding victory. “The team has found a good rhythm. We’re playing very maturely and we’re finding ourselves now. It’s good that we’re getting on track, there are important games ahead of us,” commented Kehl.
BVB starts the year with four wins
After a mixed few months, falling to sixth place and a long winter break with a tormenting view of the table, Borussia is back in the title race. The comeback of injured key players like Haller and Marco Reus, who was in the starting XI for the first time since mid-September, and the improvement in form among professionals like Schlotterbeck, Adeyemi and Brandt fuels belief in their own strength. “Our toolbox is getting bigger,” said coach Edin Terzic, proud of the splendid start to the new year with victories over Augsburg (4-3), Mainz (2-1), Leverkusen (2-0) and those who were level on points before the game Opponents from Freiburg.
Nevertheless, the football teacher warned against premature euphoria. He used the M-word, which reappeared on that day for the first time in months, in a different context: “It doesn’t do us any good to start the year well. The M-word is May. We can win a lot of points by then. We know that we have to stay focused.”