With his decisive goals in the semi-finals and final of the Africa Cup, Sebastien Haller became the hero of an entire nation. With his goals in the 1-0 final score against DR Congo and the 2-1 final score against Nigeria, the center forward ensured that the Ivory Coast won the crown for the third time. Haller’s heroic journey was also noted with great joy at his club Borussia Dortmund.
After Haller had played virtually no sporting role at BVB in the past few months, falling behind Niclas Füllkrug and Youssoufa Moukoko in the center forward hierarchy, Sebastien Haller’s big goal comeback followed at the home tournament in Ivory Coast.
In particular, his final goal in the 81st minute last Sunday in the final against Nigeria ensured that Haller will be a folk hero in his home country for the rest of his life.
The scenes of Haller crying in the arms of a television reporter during a live interview also went far beyond the borders of Ivory Coast.
According to a “Sport Bild” report, BVB head coach Edin Terzic is said to have played a small part in the goalscorer’s sporting resurrection at the Africa Cup. As the trade magazine reported, Terzic regularly contacted the 29-year-old during the continental tournament and continued to encourage him.
BVB is hoping for Haller’s upswing in Dortmund too
Before the Ivorian games, the two are said to have maintained contact via text messages and then also spoke on the phone afterwards. Terzic obviously wanted to show his full support to his former goalscorer, even if he only made a measly four starting eleven appearances in the Bundesliga in 2023/2024 and did not score a single goal this season.
BVB’s hope has grown over the past two weeks that Haller will now find his old strength again in Dortmund due to his match practice and strong performances at the Africa Cup.
As a reminder: Last season, with his nine goals in 15 games between February and May, Haller was considered one of BVB’s key players on the way to almost winning the championship in 2023.