Emotional return? BVB leave the door open for Kagawa | OneFootball

After arriving in Japan, Borussia Dortmund is set for an emotional reunion with Shinji Kagawa. At the same time, BVB executive Carsten Cramer is giving the fan favorite hope of a return.

Borussia Dortmund set off on Sunday for an eight-day trip to Japan. In addition to the two friendlies against Cerezo Osaka (July 29) and FC Tokyo (August 1), the main focus is on the club’s international marketing. At the same time, it will also mark a reunion with Shinji Kagawa, who for years helped make BVB one of the most popular Bundesliga teams in his homeland.

On Wednesday, Dortmund will face Kagawa’s current club, Cerezo Osaka, in Osaka. The now 37-year-old is still regarded as one of the defining figures of the successful Klopp era and continues to enjoy cult status in Japan. Club officials also credit the former playmaker for BVB’s huge following there.

Marketing managing director Carsten Cramer emphasized the Japanese star’s importance to the club upon arriving in Osaka. “We also have Shinji to thank for the standing BVB enjoys in Japan. We achieved an incredible amount with him. This is the fourth time we’ve come to Japan. That is very closely tied to Shinji,” Cramer explained.

Shinji Kagawa remains the face of BVB in Japan

BVB is using the trip to further expand its presence in one of its most important foreign markets. After visits in 2015, 2017 and 2024, this is already the club’s fourth summer tour of Japan. German football has enjoyed a strong reputation there for many years, also because numerous Japanese players have made the jump to the Bundesliga. For Borussia Dortmund, Japan is now one of the most important international markets alongside North America.

Photo: IMAGO

Cramer also made it clear that Kagawa could return to Dortmund at any time after the end of his playing career. “He also knows that when his active career comes to an end, if he wants to be involved in European football and take on a role at BVB, he would be someone we’d be extremely eager to have,” said the managing director, effectively opening the door for the fan favorite to return in a different capacity.

This time, however, sporting matters are not the top priority of the trip. Coach Niko Kovac had already announced that he would deliberately scale back the training program after two intense weeks of preseason. “That’s why we scheduled this trip for the third week of training, so that we can simply just play there,” the BVB coach said after the 2–1 friendly defeat to Fortuna Düsseldorf.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.