Borussia Dortmund’s Sporting Director Sebastian Kehl has criticised their former star Erling Haaland for being a ‘burden’ at the club in his last days. The Norwegian left Dortmund this summer to complete a headline move to Manchester City for a mere £51 million after two stellar years at Signal Iduna Park. However, the striker left with a bad taste at Dortmund following a war of words between him and Kehl.
It all started after Haaland had accused the Dortmund top brass of “pressurizing” him to make a decision on his future during the closing stages of last season. He even went on to state that it was difficult for him to focus on the pitch due to these off-field issues with the club. However, club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke labelled Haaland’s allegations as “b******t” and now Kehl has provided a further insight.
Kehl suggests Dortmund have benefitted from Erling Haaland sale
Erling Haaland rose to fame at Dortmund, after racking up 86 goals in just 89 appearances. Every elite club cross Europe in the likes of Manchester United, Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and many more circled around the -year-old, who eventually followed in his father Alfe-Inge Haaland’s footsteps to join Manchester City.
He has started his life at City with a bang, netting 12 goals in just 7 games. Meanwhile, Sebastian Kehl has now opened up on the time when Haaland was yet to convey the decision over his future to Borussia Dortmund’s hierarchy. While talking to Sport BILD, he said:
“As much as we have always appreciated Erling and the success he has had with our shirt, in the end the matter had definitely become a burden, both in the dressing room and for the club. In general, for the whole environment, it was just him. The timing of the sale was right, both for us and for City. The fact that our first 10 goals this season have been scored by 10 different players proves it.”
Kehl further explained how they have actually benefitted from the superstar’s sale to Man City.
“I would have liked to have been certain (about the Norwegian’s departure) a little earlier, because that issue limited our preparation. Without him, we have the possibility to trust the other players. The fact that our first ten competitive goals have been scored by ten different players shows that pretty well.”
While Kehl may label Erling Haaland’s exit as a benefit to Dortmund, City manager Pep Guardiola is the man who is reaping the real benefits. The manager lacked a traditional striker last season in his team, yet managed to defend his Premier League title. Now that he has a diamond in Haaland who is scoring goals for fun, Guardiola is expected to finally guide City to their first ever Champions League trophy.
On the other hand, Dortmund too brought in two strikers to replace Haaland with Ajax striker Sebastian Haller who netted 34 goals in 43 appearances in all competitions last season, and Karim Adeyemi who bagged 23 goals in 44 games for RB Leipzig. However, Haller is diagnosed with a prostrate cancer and is undergoing treatment, which forced the Bundesliga side to buy another striker as they acquired 34-year-old Anthony Modeste from FC Klon.