If we may channel our inner 2pac Shakur, “Haller if you hear me.” Borussia Dortmund have done just that- signing striker Sébastien Haller from Ajax, for an initial £26.5 million, as a replacement for Erling Halaand. Having flopped in the English Premier League with West Ham United, where he scored just ten goals in 48 matches, he regained his groove in the Dutch Eredivisie.
The 28-year-old Ivory Coast international netted 47 times in 65 games for the leading club of the Netherlands top flight, and that has seen him rewarded with a move to the second best club in the German Bundesliga.
“We’re very pleased to have been able to sign Sébastien Haller – a seasoned centre-forward who has recently caused a sensation in the Champions League, but who also knows the Bundesliga in particular and has already demonstrated his class and high-quality finishing there,” reads a statement attributed to Borussia Dortmund’s new sporting director Sebastian Kehl.
“The overall package is very promising. Sébastien possesses a strong physical presence and he is physically very resilient. With his experience, he can also offer support and stability to our young attacking players. During the talks with us, he made it clear that he has big ambitions with BVB.”
No one expects him to match the prolific scoring of Erling Haaland, obviously, as the Norwegian grabs the goals at an other-worldly rate, but if Sébastien Haller brings some more consistency than we’ve seen in recent years, it would be enough to make this a smarter signing.
By the way, his bicycle kick scoring strike in 2020 was a goal of the year nominee.
The statement from Haller himself reads:
“The stadium is great, but the greatest stadium is nothing without its fans. As part of the BVB family, I can’t wait to feel the support of more than 80,000 spectators in the future. We’ll hopefully achieve great things together in the next few years and be able to celebrate together too.”
Haller has already proved himself in the Bundesliga, as he scored 24 goals in 60 appearances for Eintracht Frankfurt, over the course of 2017-2019.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.