Berlin: Sebastien Haller seems to enjoy his new role as Borussia Dortmund’s figurehead. The 28-year-old has become the face of Borussia Dortmund’s hopes to end the dominance of national rival Bayern Munich and to secure success in the Champions League.
The former Ajax striker is facing vast expectations as the successor of the Norwegian goal-machine Erling Haaland.
“Our goal?” He asked with a wink in his eye and delivered an answer triggering applause among fans and club officials.
“We want to make it to the top and end up first,” the French-Ivorian rooted forward stated.
The club is heading for big things, he added.
Haller’s confident view follows the Black and Yellow’s intense efforts to increase its squad quality after losing Haaland, who joined Manchester City. reports Xinhua.
The striker’s balance for the Dutch side might tell the story as 47 goals and 17 assists in 66 games speak for themselves.
New arrivals such as Niklas Sule (Bayern), Karim Adeyemi (Salzburg), Nico Schlotterbeck (Freiburg) and Salih Ozcan (Cologne) are only meant to be the starting point for Dortmund’s optimism.
The club has intensified its effort to sign German international David Raum from Hoffenheim. The full-back is one of Bundesliga’s shooting stars ready to address the highest standards.
Gaining success in the first season without Haaland becomes vital for the 2012 German champion as the club suffered from disappointing setbacks over the past years.
New arrivals such as Haller are meant to increase the team’s internal competition. While Schlotterbeck and Sule lift the defense to a higher level, Dortmund’s front line seems well equipped to achieve a turnaround.
Haller comes into focus when it comes to a high rate of efficiency in the box as he finished 45 percent of his chances by scoring a goal.
The 2021-22 Dutch league top scorer (21 goals) has become the club’s most expensive investment. The unleashed spending policy comes along with the club claiming to have signed the best possible coach in the person of Edin Terzic.
The Dortmund-born manager like no other stands for full commitment when it comes to the club’s identity.
The 39-year-old triggered unprecedented enthusiasm demanding from players, officials, and fans to stay “hungry like never before.”
“Let’s be more successful and work harder than ever and celebrate loud and intensively like never before.”
The optimism seems to have taken hold of Hans-Joachim Watzke, as the club CEO predicted Bayern’s dominance is going to crumble away sooner or later.
“Things like that are inevitable as we saw it happen to Paris and Juve,” he said, adding that Bayern is no exception.
The 63-year-old praised the German national league as a well-oiled league providing excitement. “The only thing left is to change the team at the top,” he said after Bayern’s 10th national title in the series.
(IANS)
