The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Dortmund

  • Chelsea complete £48m signing of Dortmund’s Gittens

    Chelsea complete £48m signing of Dortmund’s Gittens

    Chelsea have completed the signing of winger Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund for a fee of £48.5m plus the potential for a further £3.5m in add-ons.

    The 20-year-old, who joined Dortmund from Manchester City in 2020, has signed a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge.

    The England Under-21 forward scored 17 goals and contributed 14 assists in 107 games for the German club.

    Read Also: UEFA fines Chelsea, Aston Villa for breaching financial rules

    Chelsea have already signed Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, Brighton & Hove Albion forward Joao Pedro, Sporting midfielder Dario Essugo and Strasbourg defender Mamadou Sarr this summer.

    BBC

  • Familiar Foes: Real Madrid, Dortmund fight for CWC semis spot

    Familiar Foes: Real Madrid, Dortmund fight for CWC semis spot

    Meeting again in an all-European clash at the Club World Cup, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund will fight for a place in the semi-finals this evening.

    Familiar foes from the UEFA Champions League, the pair now convene in New Jersey, with a last-four tie against either Dortmund’s domestic rivals Bayern Munich or all-conquering Paris Saint-Germain at stake.

    Real Madrid have gone through the gears since drawing their first group fixture against Al-Hilal, beating both Pachuca and Red Bull Salzburg to secure a spot in the last 16 before dispatching Juventus.

    Under the fresh management of Xabi Alonso, who demands more running and tactical flexibility than his predecessor, Los Blancos arrive in the quarter-finals as one of the most impressive teams at this revamped Club World Cup.

    Real racked up 11 shots on target against Juve last time out, as seven different players contributed to that tally, but it was academy graduate Gonzalo Garcia who made the difference with his clinical second-half strike.

    READ ALSO; How Nigeria’s security forces cut down notorious terror kingpins

    More comfortable than the scoreline suggested, the Spanish side ultimately cruised through and will now play a record 20th  game at FIFA’s top club tournament.

    Remarkably, they are yet to lose a single match at the Club World Cup, winning 16 so far; five-time winners of the competition to date, only Al-Hilal have been able to halt them since 2014.

    So, confidence should be sky-high as Los Blancos have also won four straight games against Borussia Dortmund, including a 5-2 success when the teams met in Madrid last October.

    Of course, their most significant contest came in last year’s Champions League decider, which went the way of Real, and the only time Dortmund have ever eliminated the La Liga giants was back in 2013.

    History may not be on the German club’s side this weekend, but a recent renaissance suggests they might be capable of causing an upset: following a fine end to the Bundesliga season, BVB topped Group F by drawing with Fluminense, beating Mamelodi Sundowns in a seven-goal thriller, then seeing off outsiders Ulsan HD.

    Then, in the last 16, Dortmund struck twice before the half-hour mark through Serhou Guirassy, who attempted all six of their shots against Mexican side Monterrey; revitalised winger Karim Adeyemi set up both of the Guinean’s goals.

    It is fair to say Die Schwarzgelben have been transformed by Croatian coach Niko Kovac over the past few months, climbing from 11th  to fourth in the league and snatching Champions League qualification for next season – and they have carried that momentum with them to the US.

    Dortmund have won no fewer than nine of their last 10 games – drawing the other against potential CWC semi-final opponents Bayern Munich – and Kovac takes much of the acclaim for such a stunning revival.

    Winners of the Intercontinental Cup in 1997, when European champions, the Ruhr team are ultimately seeking a first Club World Cup triumph this summer; first, though, they must overcome trophy-magnets Madrid.

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    Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel promised “a hot fight” when unbeaten league leaders Bayern Munich visit the Westfalenstadion today.

    Bayern are already 10 points clear of fifth-placed Dortmund after just 11 games.

    The rare shining light in Dortmund’s stuttering season however has been their home form.

    In all competitions, Dortmund have won eight from eight at their 82,000-strong Westfalenstadion fortress, compared to just three wins in 10 away from home.

    Speaking on Wednesday after Dortmund’s 3-0 Champions League win at Dinamo Zagreb, Kobel readied himself and his team for “a hot fight in an incredible atmosphere.”

    “We know what they can do, they’re incredibly strong. But we know what we can do as well.”

    Bayern are six points clear in the league and are heavy favourites to reclaim the Bundesliga title, having let it slip for the first time in 11 years last season.

    England captain Harry Kane is in fine form, with 14 goals in 11 league games, while the red-hot Jamal Musiala has become a more regular scorer this term.

    Read Also: UCL: Real Madrid eye home advantage versus Borussia Dortmund

     “It’s harder to beat Bayern than it has been for a long time. Harry Kane has an incredible goal rate,” said Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck.

    Last season, Kane scored a hat-trick on his ‘Der Klassiker’ debut as Bayern won 4-0 in Dortmund.

    While their attack is clearly firing, Bayern’s recent run of form is built on resolute defence.

    Bayern have kept seven straight clean sheets dating back to October’s 4-1 thumping in Barcelona, a clear sign coach Vincent Kompany’s tweaks have taken effect.

    If Dortmund are to take something away from today’s game, they will need to overturn a poor recent record against Bayern.

    Last season’s 2-0 win in Munich was Dortmund’s first league victory over Bayern since 2018.

    Those wins bookended a run of nine losses and one draw, with Bayern scoring 33 goals to Dortmund’s 11 in that time.

    Dortmund may also be without midfielder Julian Brandt, who was taken off at half-time in midweek with a thigh injury.

    Calling Brandt “extremely important”, coach Nuri Sahin said: “I hope he comes back quickly – he’s almost irreplaceable for us.”

    Elsewhere, Leverkusen travel to the German capital to take on Union Berlin today, while second-placed Eintracht Frankfurt play at Heidenheim on tomorrow.

    Leipzig will look to get their season back on track when they host Wolfsburg. Equal on points with Bayern three rounds ago, Leipzig have lost twice and drawn once to fall back to the pack.

  • Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win record 15th Champions League

    Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win record 15th Champions League

    Real Madrid withstood a Borussia Dortmund barrage to win the Champions League for the 15th time as Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior struck late in a 2-0 win at Wembley on Saturday.

    Defender Carvajal headed in from Toni Kroos’ corner on 74 minutes before Vinicius fired home to extend Madrid’s record as the most successful club in the competition’s history.

    Victory sealed a record-extending fifth Champions League title for coach Carlo Ancelotti, his third with Madrid.

    Read Also: Court revokes ‘medical doctor’s’ bail

    Meanwhile, Carvajal, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, and Nacho have won European club soccer’s biggest prize on six occasions to equal the benchmark set by Madrid icon Paco Gento.

    Dortmund paid the price for not making the most of its first-half dominance when Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois pulled off a series of saves and Niclas Fullkrug hit the post. Madrid took full advantage after the break.

    Carvajal met Kroos’ corner at the near post in the 74th to power a header past Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel.

    Jude Bellingham nearly doubled the lead moments later but then turned provider when slipping in Vinicius. With just Kobel to beat, the forward fired his shot into the far corner and raced off in celebration.

  • UCL: Terzic fancies Dortmund against ‘favourites’ PSG  

    UCL: Terzic fancies Dortmund against ‘favourites’ PSG  

    Borussia Dortmund coach Edin Terzic said semi-final opponents Paris Saint-Germain were “built to win the Champions League”, ahead of today’s first leg.

    Terzic said on Tuesday lifting the European Cup has been the “main objective” of PSG since being taken over by Qatar Sports Investments.

     “The project in Paris began with the goal of winning the Champions League,” Terzic told reporters. “That’s been their main objective for a decade.”

    PSG were crowned Ligue 1 champions on Sunday, their 10th league title in the past 12 seasons.

    The domestic dominance has however translated into European silverware. PSG lost the final in 2020 to Bayern Munich.

    Read Also: Five class of ‘94 players who have coached Super Eagles

    Dortmund, who won the competition in 1997, are playing in the semi-finals for the fifth time in the club’s history and the first time since 2013, when they also lost to Bayern in the final.

    Terzic singled out Kylian Mbappe for particular praise, but said PSG posed an attacking threat across the park.

    “It’s the question you hear the most: ‘How do you stop Kylian Mbappe?’ But if you focus only on Kylian Mbappe, then comes Ousmane Dembele or (Goncalo) Ramos, or Vitinha, or (Achraf) Hakimi, or (Randal) Kolo Muani and all the others,” he said. “They have unbelievable quality.

     “If we want to focus on one thing, then we need to focus on the ball. If we worry about the ball – there’s just one – then it’s much harder for them to score.”

    Dortmund topped a difficult group earlier in the competition featuring PSG, AC Milan and Newcastle, before eliminating PSV Eindhoven and Atletico Madrid to reach the semis.

    “Were we the favourites in the group? Against Atletico Madrid? I don’t know,” Terzic said when asked if his side will be underdogs against Paris.

     “Maybe we’re the team with less experience, but we may have the greatest hunger.

     “When everyone digs in, not just those on the field and on the bench but everyone in the stadium, we’ve got a huge opportunity – and we need to take it.”

    Terzic said several key players, including quarter-final goalscorers Marcel Sabitzer and Sebastien Haller, would be fit to play.

  • Germany hosts Euro 2024

    Adeyinka Akintunde

     

    Germany will host the 2024 European championship, otherwise known as Euro 2024, after beating Turkey to the right, in Nyon on Thursday.

    The Berlin Olympic Stadium will host the final of the 24-team tournament, with 51 games scheduled for up to 32 days in June and July 2024. Other cities that will be used for the competition are Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart.

    This means that the 2006 FIFA World Cup hosts will stage the European Championship for the first time as a unified country, with West Germany having hosted the 1988 tournament.

    Read Also: World Cup: Germany apologise to fans after ouster

    This is Turkey’s fourth defeat in the past five Euro bidding races. The country had hoped to mark the republic’s 100th anniversary in 2024 by staging its first major international football tournament, haven lost the opportunity to host the Euros in 2008, 2012 and 2016, as well as the the 2020 Summer Olympics

    Euro 2024 will return to a single-host format after Euro 2020 is held across Europe, including Germany.

    In another development, UEFA announced it would begin using video assistant referees(VAR) in the 2019/2020 Champions League, after a debut in the Super Cup. It also approved the use of VAR for the 2020 European Championship and the 2020/21 Europa League.

  • StarTimes to broadcast Manchester Derby live

    StarTimes Nigeria has announced the live broadcast of the much anticipated International Champions Cup game between Manchester United and Manchester City, featuring Manchester United derby.

    According to StarTimes Nigeria, “the game is set to take place this Friday at 3:05am and will be broadcast live and exclusive on StarTimes Nigeria”.

    Recall that the competition kicked off on Tuesday in a fierce game between Italian since AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund,  with Milan losing 1-3 to Dortmund.

    The Man-U vs Man City derby is of particular interest to many EPL fans given the bitter rivalry between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola.

    The warring duo had some infamous bust-ups as respective Real Madrid and Barcelona bosses. The enemies now find themselves in direct city again in Manchester and will clash in Houston tomorrow morning.

    United face City in the International Champions Cup in the NRG Stadium for what will be the first Manchester derby ever to take place outside of England.

    Just like it happened last year, all ICC matches can only be watched on StarTimes place with in-depth live studio analyses both in Nigeria and Beijing. ICC matches hold in three countries this year – the United States of America, China and Singapore.

    In a press statement, the Brands and Marketing Director, StarTimes TV, Qasim Elegantly noted that the company is focused on bringing unparalleled digital entertainment in broadcasting to its’ subscribers nationwide.

    He said: “StarTimes is delivering live matches from the ICC to our esteemed subscribers right at in the comfort of their homes on ST World Football.”

    “As an innovative company, we have also ensured that subscribers can enjoy the digital life on-the-go, via our StarTimes mobile app which is available for download on Android and IOS stores. These matches can also be watched live on the StarTimes TV app on their mobile phones,” he added.

    The International Champions Cup 2017 fixtures will also see clubs like Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Chelsea, PSG, Borussia Dortmund, Tottenham Hotspur, Juventus, AS Roma and Inter Milan, battle it out in a bid to secure the title last won by Paris Saint-Germain in 2016.the

  • Prosecutors: Dortmund bus attack suspect acted out of greed

    A 28-year-old German-Russian citizen took out a five-figure loan to bet that Borussia Dortmund shares would drop, then bombed the soccer team’s bus in an attack he tried to disguise as Islamic terrorism in a scheme to net millions, German officials said yesterday.

    The suspect, identified only as Sergej W. in line with German privacy laws, was arrested by a police tactical team early yesterday near the southwestern city of Tuebingen, federal prosecutors said.

    “We are working on the assumption that the suspect is responsible for the attack against the team bus of Borussia Dortmund,” prosecutors’ spokeswoman Frauke Koehler told reporters.

    She said the man came to the attention of investigators because he had made “suspicious options purchases” for shares in Borussia Dortmund, the only top-league German club listed on the stock exchange, on the same day as the April 11 attack. We had taken out a loan of “several tens of thousands of euros” days before the attack and bought a large number of so-called put options, betting on a drop in Dortmund’s share price, she said.

    “A significant share price drop could have been expected, if a player had been seriously injured or even killed as a result of the attack,” according to prosecutors, though Koehler said the precise profit W. might have expected was still being calculated.

    Ralf Jaeger, the top security official in North Rhine-Westphalia state, said the suspect had hoped to earn millions.

    “The man appears to have wanted to commit murder out of greed,” Jaeger said.

    Investigators found notes at the scene claiming responsibility on behalf of Islamic extremists, which Germany’s top security official, Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, said was a “particularly perfidious way to toy with people’s fears.”

    He said the suspect had been under close surveillance for about a week and that the evidence against him was significant.

    “The fact that someone wanted to enrich himself by killing people to influence the stock market is particularly reprehensible,” he said.

    The suspect faces charges of attempted murder, causing an explosion and serious bodily harm, and was due to appear before a judge yesterday  to determine if there was enough evidence against him to keep him in custody, Koehler said.

  • Dortmund and Liverpool charged after Europa League clash

    Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool face a UEFA investigation following their Europa League clash at Signal Iduna Park on Thursday.

    The Bundesliga side have been charged with blocking stairways during the 1-1 draw in the first leg of the quarter-final.

    Liverpool, meanwhile, have been charged by European football’s governing body after fans set off fireworks in the aftermath of Divock Origi scoring the opening goal.

    The Anfield club are already facing separate charges of illicit chanting and further crowd disturbances from their last-16 second leg draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

    Sparta Prague, meanwhile, have been charged with crowd disturbances relating to “acts of damage” during their 2-1 defeat to Villarreal.

    The Czech Republic side were hit with charges relating to offensive banners and letting off fireworks in the last round against Lazio.

  • Simon rejects Dortmund, Fenerbache

    Simon rejects Dortmund, Fenerbache

    Nigeria international, Moses Simon has told africanFootball.com he turned down several European clubs including Borussia Dortmund, Fenerbache and Liverpool in the English Premier League to stay put at Belgian champions Gent.

    Simon, who is currently at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand with Nigeria, said he wishes to stay at least another season at Gent before he would decide his next destination.

    The player makes history with Belgian champions Gent

    “Fenerbache, Dortmund and Liverpool were among the clubs who were interested in signing me, but I wish to stay at least another season at Gent before I decide what is next for me,” he told africanFootball.com.

    “I still have three more years left of my contract with Gent, but the league in Germany or England would interest me at some point.”

    Simon’s immediate target will be next season’s UEFA Champions League.

    “We are all looking forward to featuring in the Champions League after against all odds we won our first Belgian championship in 115 years,” he added.

    “It’s a big stage for all of us and we wish to make the most of it.”

    The left winger scored seven goals after he joined up with Gent in January. It was a performance that saw him finished as the second best African player in the Belgian top-flight league this past season.