Guirassy handshake row: BVB boss Kovac responds | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund experiences a heated scene involving Serhou Guirassy during their victory over Leverkusen. The striker refuses to shake hands with coach Niko Kovac – but the BVB coach immediately calms the situation.

During Dortmund’s 2-1 win in the top match against Bayer Leverkusen, Serhou Guirassy caused a heated moment. The striker was substituted in the 61st minute, reacted frustrated, threw his gloves to the ground – and refused to shake hands with coach Niko Kovac.

The coach had replaced Guirassy with Fábio Silva while the score was 1-0. Just a few minutes later, the Portuguese set up Karim Adeyemi’s goal to make it 2-0. Kovac took it calmly that it was his substitute who scored – and immediately after the final whistle, he sought a conversation with his striker. On the pitch, the two were first seen discussing, later arm in arm.

In his analysis, Kovac showed a lot of understanding for his striker’s strong reaction. “I understand that a player doesn’t necessarily want to come off,” said the 54-year-old.

At the same time, he made it clear that the matter had already been resolved internally: “We talked after the game, or rather, I explained it to him. If there’s anyone who stands by him, it’s me. So he has to accept it when I take him off sometimes.”

Guirassy out of form? BVB coach Kovac continues to back his top striker

Kovac pointed out that with increasing experience, he deals with such situations more calmly: “Maybe a few years ago I would have reacted differently.” Now, he knows that in football, sometimes you have to “wait out” certain moments, because adrenaline and emotions are running high.

Guirassy, who has recently been inconsistent and didn’t contribute to a goal in the match, remains a central part of Kovac’s offense. “I have supported him and I will continue to support him. He is our most important striker,” the coach emphasized – but also added that Guirassy, in turn, knows “how important I am for him.”

Sporting director Sebastian Kehl also confirmed that the incident was resolved immediately after the match. He saw that coach and player “embraced each other.” Disappointment over a substitution is understandable, but players like Silva also need playing time, and Silva immediately recommended himself with his assist.

In the end, it was just a brief emotional outburst – and a coach who quickly smoothed things over. “Serhou and I are like two peas in a pod, we understand each other,” Kovac summed up.

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