Does Sébastien Haller Have a Future at BVB?
Some players don’t fit with some clubs. Although teams spend tends of millions of pounds bringing players to them every time a transfer window opens, not all of the moves work out well for both parties. Sometimes it is because the club changes in some way, such as a new manager arriving, and sometimes it is down to the player feeling like they have been mis-sold the project that they have signed up for.
In the case of Sébastien Haller, things haven’t worked out at Borussia Dortmund the way either the player or the club might have wished for, but it isn’t exactly clear what the future holds for him at BVB.
Who is Sébastien Haller?
Sébastien Romain Teddy Haller was born in Ris-Orangis in France in the 22nd of June 1994. His youth career saw him play for FCO Vigneux and Brétigny Foot before a 2007 move to Auxerre’s youth system. That resulted in a 2010 graduation to Auxerre II, then in 2012 he began playing for the first team, remaining in the squad for three years.
On Christmas Eve 2014, Haller was sent out on loan to Utrecht in the Dutch Eredivisie until the end of the season, at which point he moved there on a permanent basis, having been voted as the Player of the Year by the supporters. Haller remained there for three years.
Most goals in Group C:
9 – Sébastien Haller
9 – Sporting CP
4 – Borussia Dortmund
3 – Besiktas— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) November 24, 2021
In 2017, a fee of around €7 million was paid by Eintracht Frankfurt to take him to the Bundesliga, winning the first trophy of his career in his first season. Scoring 15 goals in 29 Bundesliga appearances during the 2018-2019 campaign, as well as getting nine assists, only Robert Lewandowski had more goal involvements than him.
That was enough to persuade West Ham United to fork out as much as £45 million for him, but he struggled to settle, resulting in a move to Ajax. That was in a deal for around €22.5 million, with his former Utrecht manager Erik Ten Hag signing him and seeing him make waves in the Champions League.
Arriving at Borussia Dortmund
During the 2021-2022 Champions League campaign, Haller scored twice in each half of his debut game to become the first place since Marco van Basten to score four goals in his debut game in the competition. That was improved upon when he scored in his next goal, meaning he was the first player in the competition’s history to score five goals in his first two games.
He then went on to score in every group game, making him just the second player after Cristiano Ronaldo to do so and the fastest player to ten Champions League goals. It was enough to capture the eye of Borussia Dortmund, who paid €31 million for him.
That was on the sixth of July 2022, with a contract being agreed until 2026. When he was diagnosed with a malignant testicular tumour, Haller withdrew from BVB’s pre-season training camp. After undergoing surgery and chemotherapy, Haller was allowed to return to training and joined his teammates at a winter training camp in Marbella. He scored in a friendly, which was his first match back in action, then netted a hat-trick in another friendly a few days later.
Haller has scored goals repeatedly, but missed a penalty in a game that would have seen his side secure the Bundesliga trophy on the final day of the season.
What Does His BVB Future Hold?
It would be untrue to suggest that Borussia Dortmund wanted to punish Haller for his penalty miss against Mainz that meant that the club missed out on the title. That being said, there might well have been some relief when he injured his ankle at the start of the 2023-2024 campaign that resulted in him missing most of the season.
In the end, he scored just three goals when he fid make it onto the pitch, leading to some wondering whether or not his career had all but reached its conclusion. He turned 30 on the 22nd of June 2024, so is no longer the young player that he once was, even if his actual game time has been limited.
https://www.tiktok.com/@_fcmotivate/video/7237873765097524506
As the summer transfer window of 2024 drew to a close, Die Borussen needed to make a decision that was best for both the club and the player, choosing to send him out on loan to La Liga club Leganés for the season.
The question for most people is whether that spells the end of his Dortmund career. The fact that manager Nuri Şahin was willing to sanction the move is certainly suggestive of a club that isn’t all that keen on helping him to revive his career. Whilst the player himself might want to perform well in Spain and return to Germany with a point to prove, it is more than possible that the club itself might not give him the chance.
