A short cameo to reach a milestone: Brandt makes 300th appearance for BVB | OneFootball

At the end of what was probably his shortest appearance for BVB, Julian Brandt couldn’t help but break into a broad smile. Visibly amused, the midfielder – who had only come on in the sixth minute of stoppage time – first embraced manager Niko Kovac and then sporting director Sebastian Kehl. The player was also honoured in the dressing room: to the applause of the team, Kovac highlighted Brandt’s contributions.

Shortly afterwards, the coach asked for understanding regarding the brief appearance: “Jule only played for a very short time today. That personally hurt me and I felt sorry about it. I actually wanted to bring him on for 20 minutes. But after the 1-2 and the 2-2, we had the momentum – and I didn’t want to interrupt that.” Kehl commented on the curious milestone in similar terms: “It perhaps wasn’t ideal to play for such a short time. But the game was very frantic and very wild towards the end. I think Jule understood that. That shouldn’t detract from his performance over these seven years at Borussia Dortmund.”

Despite the decision to part ways in the summer, the appreciation for Brandt at Borussia Dortmund remains undiminished. “He’s played 300 games for BVB, provided countless assists and scored countless goals. That’s a great career for a very great club. Above all, what Jule shows as a person is unique,” enthused the coach.

With Brandt’s departure, an era is coming to an end in Dortmund. Since his move from Bayer Leverkusen in 2019, the 48-time Germany international has scored 56 goals and set up 69 more. In 2021, he won the DFB-Pokal and also featured in the Champions League final against Real Madrid (a 2-0 loss). Alongside his consistent goal-scoring contributions, his identification with the club was particularly valued. “300 games for Borussia Dortmund – that’s a real milestone,” emphasised Kehl.

Brandt currently ranks 20th on BVB’s list of record appearances. Niko Kovac held out the prospect of further appearances for the 29-year-old until the end of the season: “I hope he gets significantly more minutes in the coming games. ” It is therefore quite possible that Brandt will climb even further up the club’s all-time appearances list. Andreas Möller, with 301 appearances, and Christian Wörns, with 303, are within reach. Michael Zorc remains the undisputed leader with 572 appearances.