😍 Hummels back in a Dortmund shirt: how BVB welcome their legend
Before the ball officially starts rolling, the 2014 World Champion was, of course, given a proper farewell by his fans in Dortmund's Westfalenstadion.
📸 INA FASSBENDER - AFP or licensors
Who knows, maybe he'll convince coach Niko Kovac so much that he'll get another contract after all. We'd celebrate - and one city in the Ruhr area definitely would too.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.
📸 Lars Baron - 2025 Getty Images
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Bournemouth in advanced talks to sign Bayer Leverkusen's Amine Adli
Bournemouth are in advanced negotiations with Bayer Leverkusen to sign Morocco international Amine Adli in a deal worth around £26 million. The 25-year-old, who can operate across the forward line, was a key part of the Leverkusen team that won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal in 2023-24, also reaching the Europa League final. That campaign was his most productive to date, delivering 10 goals in 42 appearances in all competitions. Adli has scored 23 goals and provided 24 assists in 142 matches for Leverkusen since joining from Toulouse in 2021. He represented France at youth level before switching allegiance to Morocco, earning 15 senior caps so far. Last season was disrupted by a broken leg that kept him out for three months, limiting him to six Bundesliga starts. However, his performances when fit have kept him in demand, with Bournemouth now hoping to bring him to the Premier League. The proposed move could trigger a chain of transfers involving Brentford and Newcastle United. Bournemouth forward Dango Ouattara has been the subject of talks with Brentford, who are seeking attacking reinforcements. The Bees view Ouattara as their preferred replacement for Yoane Wissa, who is wanted by Newcastle. Newcastle are pursuing Wissa after missing out on Liam Delap and Joao Pedro. The 28-year-old had a 'gentleman's agreement' to leave Brentford this summer, having stayed on last season when Ivan Toney departed. However, the sale of Bryan Mbeumo to Manchester United initially saw Brentford block his exit, prompting Wissa to refuse to train. The Magpies are confident of sealing a deal worth about £35 million for Wissa, but Brentford will only sanction the move once they have a replacement in place. That replacement is expected to be Ouattara — provided Bournemouth secure Adli. Ouattara, primarily a left winger but also capable on the right or through the middle, joined Bournemouth in January 2023 from Lorient. He scored three goals in his debut Premier League campaign and has continued to attract interest for his pace and direct style. Bournemouth have already strengthened this summer with the arrivals of goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic from Chelsea, left-back Adrien Truffert from Rennes, centre-back Bafode Diakite from Lille and forward Eli Junior Kroupi from Lorient. Adding Adli would give manager Andoni Iraola another versatile attacking option as the club aim to push further up the table next season. With negotiations at an advanced stage, the Cherries' pursuit of Adli could set off a domino effect that reshapes the attacking line-ups at Bournemouth, Brentford and Newcastle in the coming weeks.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Bundesliga Giants Pushing to Sign £40m Brighton Star
Brighton's Buonanotte Emerging as Bayer's Transfer Option Bayer Leverkusen's quest to strengthen their attacking options on the right wing has taken an intriguing turn, with Brighton's Facundo Buonanotte now firmly on their radar. According to Kicker, the Argentine attacker, who spent last season on loan at Leicester City, is being considered as an alternative to AS Monaco's Maghnes Akliouche. The club's offensive reshuffle comes after the high-profile departure of Florian Wirtz to Liverpool. Kicker notes, 'It will be the key transfer in the end. The signing of a dribbling and creative attacking player and his quality will ultimately determine how this transfer summer is to be assessed from Leverkusen's point of view.' This statement underlines just how pivotal the club considers this position in shaping their upcoming season. Buonanotte as a Viable Alternative Bayer's preferred target remains 23-year-old Akliouche from Monaco. However, the Monegasque club's valuation of over 50 million euros has proven prohibitive. Kicker reports, 'A limit that, according to managing director Simon Rolfes, will not be crossed.' With such financial constraints, Leverkusen are naturally exploring alternative options, and Buonanotte's profile fits the requirements. Brighton, meanwhile, are clear on their position. The 20-year-old is unlikely to find regular game time under Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler this season. Last season, on loan at Leicester, he featured in 31 Premier League games, scoring five goals and assisting twice. As Kicker observes, 'Deshalb möchte Brighton ihn entweder verleihen oder teuer verkaufen. Zuletzt wurden in England 45 Millionen Euro als Ablöseforderung für den argentinischen Nationalspieler (zwei Einsätze) genannt.' This valuation reflects both his current ability and potential growth. Profile and Potential Buonanotte brings a combination of pace, dribbling, and creative playmaking. As a left-footed attacker capable of shaping the game, he ticks many of the boxes Bayer require. Kicker highlights, 'Anders als Akliouche erscheint Buonanotte früher greifbar.' This immediacy may prove decisive, as Leverkusen need a player who can integrate quickly and make an immediate impact. While Akliouche remains the dream signing, Buonanotte presents a more accessible option. His blend of talent, youth, and versatility makes him a compelling alternative, particularly for a team looking to mitigate the loss of a key player like Wirtz. Bayer's strategy this summer will hinge on this decision, with Buonanotte potentially stepping into the spotlight. Transfer Outlook With the transfer window ticking down, timing will be crucial. If Bayer can negotiate effectively with Brighton, Buonanotte could arrive as an instant boost, offering creativity and dynamism in the half-right offensive role. Given his proven Premier League experience, even at a young age, he may be exactly the type of player Leverkusen need to maintain momentum after losing Wirtz. Our View – EPL Index Analysis From a Brighton supporter's perspective, Buonanotte's potential move is a mixed bag. On one hand, Fabian Hurzeler's vision for Brighton involves nurturing young talent, and losing a player like Buonanotte, who has already tasted the rigours of the Premier League, may seem premature. He contributed five goals and two assists in 31 appearances for Leicester, which demonstrates that he can handle top-flight football. On the other hand, the reported 45 million euro valuation underlines Brighton's intent to make strategic reinvestments. Hurzeler is preparing for his second season in charge, and part of that will involve balancing squad development with financial pragmatism. Selling or loaning Buonanotte for such a fee could strengthen Brighton's ability to bring in multiple targets and ensure squad depth across the season. Fans may also note that Buonanotte's style – dribbling, creative, and capable of shaping play – is exactly the type of profile Hurzeler favours. While losing him might sting initially, his progression at a club like Bayer Leverkusen could also reflect positively on Brighton's academy and recruitment model. It suggests that the club can produce talent capable of performing at both the Premier League and European level. Ultimately, supporters will watch closely. If Leverkusen finalise the move, Buonanotte will be an immediate contributor, and Brighton may be judged on whether they can replace his creativity adequately while continuing to develop other promising prospects under Hurzeler's management.
New York Times
6 hours ago
- New York Times
For Gio Reyna, the transfer waiting game is not helping his cause
Four years ago, Gio Reyna looked destined to be among the faces of the 2026 World Cup. Such was his rapid rise and prodigious talent, able to carve up Mexico on his dribble and dependably contribute to Champions League regular Borussia Dortmund's attack. A shoo-in for the U.S. men's national team squad in Qatar, it seemed only natural that he'd be a leading man by the time the next World Cup came to North America. Advertisement Instead, his perceived valuation is rapidly deteriorating — a 'reverse Labubu' scenario at a pivotal point of his career. For over half a decade, Reyna was the hot commodity among a bunch of burgeoning talents from the United States. Even as Christian Pulisic became a USMNT regular as a teenager and earned a record-setting move to Chelsea, whispers were that the son of Claudio Reyna was an even bigger prospect. When he debuted in 2020, he joined Dortmund teammates Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham among the most-hyped surefire stars of his generation. The association hasn't aged well. While Haaland and Bellingham are leading figures for club and country, Reyna, presently, is hardly relevant for either. Late last week, Dortmund confirmed that Reyna had lost his claim on the No. 7 shirt he had donned for four seasons. That very marketable digit is instead in the custody of Jobe Bellingham, Jude's younger brother who arrived this summer as an upgrade in the position that Reyna plays. It wasn't a subtle handoff, either; atop an otherwise mundane 'updated squad numbers' post, the club plastered a large banner of Bellingham pointing to his new number — inherited from a player just three years his senior. At the Club World Cup, Bellingham (wearing 77 at the time) debuted mere days after signing, logging 228 minutes as Dortmund reached the quarterfinal. Reyna, who was propped up by FIFA for an interview on the tournament staged in his home country, was given a meager 12-minute cameo in the group stage finale when the main men were given the briefest of reprieve. One suspects it would be much of the same if Reyna, now assigned shirt No. 21, sticks around. You can't fault the club for planning to move forward from a stagnated former prospect. The trick, for Reyna, is to do the same. Advertisement Simply, the streets of availability and opportunity have too seldom intersected. Reyna has a concerningly long injury ledger for a player who won't turn 23 until November. For most players, querying their name into Google gives autocompleted suggestions like 'highlights,' 'transfers,' or, for the most gawkerish of fans, some synonym of 'partner.' For Reyna, 'injury' is among the top assumptions. Every year, Bundesliga teams play 34 league games totaling 3,060 minutes outside of stoppage time. Since the start of 2021-22, Reyna has logged just 1,929 minutes — fewer than he played in 2020-21 alone, and 15.8% of all available minutes. The injury issues compound on such a high-pressure club when you aren't a guaranteed starter. Dortmund has changed coaches six times, counting the handoffs from managers to an interim to the permanent successor as two changes. Each new coach concocts a crash course to identify who he can trust on his new squad. As coaches survey what each player has done lately, they'll see that Reyna misses considerable time with injuries, a reason to wonder how dependable he'll be for the task at hand. Other players get a look, they impress, they carve out roles in the rotation, and Reyna's path to playing time gets even more obstructed. The trick, then, is to find a coach and a situation where Reyna can confidently be entrusted with a consistent, if not leading, role. Clubs willing to take that gamble may not present the most favorable optics for the Gio Reyna brand, which still sees him as a very marketable figure with upside. A move to a mid-to-lower table club like Parma (a Serie A side to which Reyna has been linked this summer) would come with banterish suggestions that he's a flop. Facing the wrath of a thousand EA FC players whose Ultimate Teams have already found new dynamic playmakers shouldn't matter now. Not when such a move — one with playing time on offer — would undoubtedly be in Reyna's best interests. Advertisement Club transfers are a rare time when a coach can handpick an option to fit into his squad. Such an endorsement comes with trust and optimism that there's a role to be filled by the new signing. That backing carries into practice, then into picking a team if the player's training has been of the requisite standard. It's a fresh look that Reyna desperately needs. It's a chance he had once, albeit with one vital difference. Reyna's loan away to Nottingham Forest was supposed to provide that change of scenery in the 2023-24 winter window. It seemed as though he could help unpick locks and add more dynamism to the recently promoted side. The problem: Forest was in the thick of the relegation battle. While the sporting department surely would have loved to see Reyna get more time, Nuno Espirito Santo leaned into players with Premier League experience to stave off the drop. So while the club's absolute aim was achieved, it was a scenario that did little, if anything, to give Reyna a boost. While the fit seemed imperfect almost immediately, Dortmund's hand was forced. It had held out hoping for a more lucrative offer until the final day of the window. It's a race against the clock that the club is seemingly prepared to face again as the close of this summer's window looms on September 1. There would be a crucial difference between joining a projected bottom-half side now compared to at the end of the winter window: time. Rather than being a late arriver desperate to earn minutes, he would be part of the core from Matchday 1. It's an advantage that is rapidly waning, as teams have concluded preseason and are now fully preparing for season-opening fixtures. Every day that Reyna stays at Dortmund is a wasted one if a move is mandatory for progress. Surely, he must recognize the urgency to resolve this years-long saga. Something has to give. Those lower-bracket clubs that would most benefit from Reyna's services often operate far below Dortmund's stated asking price. Publicly available reporting suggests that linked suitor Parma hasn't spent over $15 million (€12.85 million) on a transfer fee in over two decades. Even if a generous sell-on cut was brokered, it's hard to envision Dortmund letting go of a one-time whiz kid for even that sum. A half-year loan stint in MLS could help Reyna see the field and reignite a spark in potential suitors down the road (Reyna's current Dortmund contract is up after this season). Speculation is that Reyna has no interest in such a step, though, as those pesky optics suggest a move stateside may paint him as a player unable to return to a Champions League standard. Only Reyna could prove that narrative wrong. Advertisement These would still be playable games in a quality first-division league with exceptional facilities. Playing regularly in MLS has only bolstered Diego Luna's case to be among Mauricio Pochettino's playmakers, not hurt it. If Luna makes the squad for the 2026 World Cup, it could quite possibly come at Reyna's expense as an alternative in the same role. Somewhere, somehow, there must be a rapid solution. For a now-rudderless young player and his boyhood club that seems quite ready to move on, compromises may need to be found. If not, the consequences will be felt most by Reyna, not Dortmund. If it results in Reyna missing a home World Cup, the impact on his career and legacy could be irrevocably damning. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
