BVB blow confirmed: Konstantelias suffers nightmare injury | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund has suffered a major setback. In Giannis Konstantelias’ case, the worst fears were confirmed after the match against HSV.

There is now sad certainty at Borussia Dortmund: Giannis Konstantelias suffered a torn ACL in his left knee during his Bundesliga debut against Hamburger SV. The 23-year-old new signing will therefore be out for BVB for several months. The club confirmed the serious injury on Sunday (30 August) after thorough examinations.

The evening had initially hardly been able to go any better for Konstantelias. After his move from PAOK Thessaloniki to Dortmund, the Greek was named in the starting lineup for the 2-0 win over HSV. The midfielder had already made an impression after coming on in the Supercup against Bayern Munich (1-2).

Against Hamburg, Konstantelias immediately made another statement. After Serhou Guirassy had given Dortmund an early lead, the new signing made it 2-0 himself before the break. But shortly after halftime, what had been a successful Bundesliga debut turned into a bitter evening.

BVB new signing Konstantelias suffers torn ACL

In a challenge with Bakery Jatta, Konstantelias twisted his left knee and then stayed down on the pitch in pain. After receiving treatment, he was unable to continue. He was replaced by Marcel Sabitzer in the 54th minute. Right after the match, coach Niko Kovac had already feared a serious injury. The situation was especially bitter because of the circumstances. “His family traveled here especially for this match. He scores a goal and gets injured,” Kovac explained.

Photo: Getty Images

Konstantelias had also reported while leaving the pitch “that he heard a cracking sound.” On Sunday, the worst fears were finally confirmed. Dortmund sporting director Lars Ricken was already looking ahead to the rehabilitation process: “For now, however, both his focus and ours are entirely on his recovery. Giannis has our full support.”

For BVB, the long-term absence is not only a major sporting setback. Konstantelias had only arrived from Greece on 17 August. Dortmund reportedly paid a transfer fee of 26 million euros, with further bonus payments possible. Now, instead of working on his sporting breakthrough, the highly promising player must first focus on his comeback.

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