While some young stars at Borussia Dortmund have made it straight from the youth ranks into the professional squad in the recent past, the jump from the club’s U23 team recently seems too big for many. This is also the case for Antonios Papadopoulos, for whom the signs apparently point to farewell.
Does Borussia Dortmund’s U23s have a permeability problem? While youngsters like Giovanni Reyna in the past or recently Jamie Bynoe-Gittens from the U19 made it straight into BVB’s Bundesliga squad, recently hardly any talent has come from the U23 youth academy, which is currently active in the 3rd league. all the way to the top.
With Antonios Papadopoulos, at least for a while, it looked like the defender could make the move. It is not for nothing that BVB gave the now 24-year-old a professional contract a year ago, but there is currently little to suggest that there will be more to the six cross-competition short appearances in the BVB uniform.
Papadopoulos fell too much into the background and was even overtaken in the rankings by the much younger Hendry Blank (19).
That’s why, as the “kicker” reports, the signs point to Papadopoulos saying goodbye. According to the trade magazine, it should be over in Dortmund after the season at the latest. It is also possible that Papadopoulos will leave in the winter. It would be the last opportunity to get a small fee for the 24-year-old defender, whose contract ends in the summer of 2024.
This will probably also destroy a dream. Because Papadopoulos is a close friend of BVB star Nico Schlotterbeck and would have liked to have been in the starting line-up with him. But that didn’t happen and – as of now – it probably won’t happen again.
Terzic is probably betting on a young star
Instead, BVB coach Edin Terzic could soon rely on the aforementioned Hendry Blank. According to “kicker”, the central defender, who delivers strong performances in the U19 and U23 teams, is already on Terzic’s list as a candidate for the future.
In addition to Papadopoulos, who probably failed at Borussia, the trade journal also names Abdoulaye Kamara and Prince Aning, who are struggling despite all their hopes and are still far from Bundesliga level.
Your advantage: Both are only 19 years old and – unlike Papadopoulos – still have a long-term contract.