Why Sebastian Kehl is leaving Borussia Dortmund | OneFootball

On Sunday, Borussia Dortmund unexpectedly announced that Sebastian Kehl would leave his position as sporting director with immediate effect.

Since then, reports in the German media have emerged explaining the sudden end of the collaboration between Dortmund and the 46-year-old.

According to local outlet Ruhr Nachrichten, managing director for sport Lars Ricken – previously a strong supporter of Kehl – was no longer convinced that he “could shape the club’s future positively”.

The main criticism centred on the club’s transfer strategy, which “over the years had become increasingly poor.” There was a growing belief that “BVB had lost their unique selling point of identifying and developing the next top stars early” – a situation which has “cost credit and trust among the fans."

Another local outlet, Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, has reported that Kehl was considered “too slow and too hesitant in his decisions”.

According to Kicker, the decision for Kehl to leave had already been made before Dortmund’s 3–2 win over Hamburger SV on Saturday, with the timing chosen ahead of the international break to allow both sides to reorganise in peace.