Salih Özcan is back in the regular staff at Borussia Dortmund. BVB coach Edin Terzic highlighted the midfielder’s recent achievements after the away win in the Bundesliga against TSG Hoffenheim.
“Salih deserves his chance because he trained really well,” said Terzic on “DAZN” after the 3-1 win in Sinsheim.
Özcan was on the pitch for the full 90 minutes against TSG Hoffenheim, as he was the previous week against VfL Wolfsburg (1-0). Captain Emre Can, however, initially had to sit on the substitutes’ bench.
Salih Özcan is fighting his way back into the BVB starting line-up
At the start of the season, the situation in BVB’s defensive midfield looked exactly the opposite. Özcan is now in demand again under Terzic.
“Whenever we used him for a short time, he made sure that we were very happy. He absolutely deserved his chance last week and he took advantage of it,” praised the 40-year-old the twelve-time Turkish international.
Özcan moved from 1. FC Cologne to the black and yellow team in the summer of 2022 for around five million euros. The Rhineland native was no longer a regular player in the second half of the season.
Salih Özcan: BVB instead of Galatasaray
During the past transfer period, the top Turkish club Galatasaray courted Özcan. “The offer definitely came because my agent was called. It’s a very, very big club, […] “But I’m fully focused on the season and have another three years of contract here,” the BVB professional revealed to “Sky” at the end of August. This persistence is now paying off for the midfielder.
Borussia Dortmund continues in the Champions League against AC Milan on Wednesday evening (9 p.m.). It is likely that head coach Terzic will then fall back on the defensively strong Özcan.