Which players famously wore the Dortmund #10 shirt in years gone by?
Welcome back to the newest edition of BVB Squad numbers. In this edition, we’ll be looking at arguably one of the most coveted and iconic numbers in football, the #10 jersey. The #10 jersey has been donned by some of the best players ever to grace the beautiful game and propelled the legacy of the number to otherworldly levels. We are here to talk about some of the most talented players to don the #10 jersey for the yellow-blacks of Dortmund.
Andreas Moller
Moller, who played for BVB in two different stints was a very good player but did not have the best of reputations among fans due to his affinity to controversy. Infamous for his dive against Karlsruher SC, which earned him the nickname ‘Schwalbenkonig’ which translates to King of the Dives and even his imitation of Paul Gascoigne after the Euro 96 semi-final win over England on penalties has attracted unnecessary attention. In his two stints for the Schwarzgelben, Moller was an instrumental figure in BVB’s success on the pitch playing 301 times for the club which included 2 Bundesliga titles, a UEFA Champions League, 2 DFL Super Cups and an Intercontinental Cup. He lived up to his controversial reputation after he moved to arch-rivals Schalke on a free transfer after his second stint with Dortmund, attracting the wrath of both sets of fans.
Tomas Rosicky
The Czech national team captain is considered as one of the most talented players ever to don the black and yellow kit. Nicknamed ‘Little Mozart’ for his ability to dictate the tempo of the game from midfield and is considered as one of the best ever players to come out of Czech Republic along with Pavel Nedved and Petr Cech. Rosicky joined Dortmund from Sparta Prague for a record transfer fee paid by a Bundesliga club at the time and was a pivotal part of the team that won the Bundesliga title in 2001-02, the only piece of silverware he won at Dortmund. Rosicky is renowned for his supreme technical ability and his skill on the ball but unfortunately, he is one of the what ifs of football and his influence and ability have been marred by a barrage of long-term injuries since he moved away from the Ruhr club.
Mario Gotze
Super Mario, the match winner for Germany in the 2014 FIFA World Cup final, who at a point of time was one of the most prodigious talents in Europe, has seen a decline in his stock over the years after his controversial move from Dortmund to Bayern due to injuries and decrease in game time but is back at the club where he made his professional debut to finally fulfil his massive potential. The wunderkind is the second most expensive German player of all time and was highly regarded for his technique, dribbling ability, and creativity. He was an integral part of the squad that won successive Bundesliga titles between 2010 and 2012 and even a DFB Pokal win along with the Champions League Final in 2013 under the ever charismatic Jurgen Klopp. Gotze, who has been criticized for his fitness problems, mainly regarding his weight in his time at Bavaria, was diagnosed with myopathy in February 2017. It is a metabolic disorder which causes fatigue and weight gain and is attributed to his fitness issues over the years but he has successfully recovered from it and has begun training for the 2017-18 season and who knows if he is able to finally fulfill his massive potential at the club where he made his name.
The most recent player to also wear #10 was Henrikh Mkhitaryan who left the club in an acrimonious way for Manchester United due to issues between the higher ups of the club and his agents but ended up winning Bundesliga Player of the Year in his last season after 2 undermining seasons. Hopefully, Gotze is back to full fitness and can now develop into the world beater we all hoped he would eventually become.
