Sports

Borussia Dortmund: The Football factory

Published

3 years ago

September 21, 2020

George

There must be magic in the water at Borussia Dortmund. The Bundesliga club has gained a reputation of finding and fostering world-class talent; taking young players with potential and developing them into world beaters.

Its record speaks for itself. The likes of Christian Pulisic and Ousmane Dembélé have all, at different stages, walked through Dortmund’s halls and gone on to play at the very highest level, making the club a handsome profit in return.

The current squad now boasts prodigious talents such as Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland who, already, are considered two of the best players in world football and who will, one day, demand eye-watering transfer fees.

But this isn’t just a happy accident. It’s a very deliberate strategy that has transformed Dortmund into real contenders both domestically and in the Champions League, despite it not being able to compete financially with some of the continent’s biggest teams.

The club’s enviable philosophy was borne from its near bankruptcy in 2005, forcing it to do business differently to some of its wealthier rivals.

Scouting network

Locating young players with the potential to become superstars is no mean feat and the club relies on its impressive scouting system to unearth the next big thing.

It’s an operation run by Markus Pilawa, whose small team compile an in-depth analysis of every player they watch and speak regularly with the first-team management to confirm a player’s suitability.

He’s tasked with signing both established professionals and new talent in order to find the right balance in the squad.

Now, because of the soaring prices demanded for the best footballers, Dortmund focuses much of its attention on young talent. The scouting process of which can start as young as 14. Pilawa ideally monitors a youngster for up to two years before making a move, ensuring the player has the personality to cope with the club’s huge demands.

The next big thing?

Whilst Bellingham has gone straight into the first team this season scoring in his debut on Monday, there are also those graduating from the club’s academy. Chief amongst them is US starlet Giovanni Reyna.

The American, whose mother and father both played international soccer for the US, joined Dortmund in 2019 from New York City’s youth academy and is now making strides into the first team.

The club expects a lot from the creative midfielder who has benefited from the unique set up at the club. In addition to high-quality training, a portion of Dortmund’s success with young players is down to attention to detail.

The club’s top young talents, identified by the team of coaches, regularly meet for one-on-one sessions which seek to help them both on and off the pitch.

US market

It’s no coincidence that two of Dortmund’s latest talents to flourish have been American; Pulisic and Reyna.

The US, not yet known for its football culture, is somewhat of an untapped resource in the sport but Dortmund knows there is talent to be found. For the last three years, Pilawa has worked to develop Dortmund’s scouting network in the region and believes it can be a gold mine for clubs willing to work hard.

Youth coordinator Ricken is fully aware of the difficulties a young player might face when joining a new team and the club has methods of softening the move. Players without English take up to four lessons a week to learn the language which helps them integrate with their new surroundings.

Sports

Wazito fc Boss to pay sacked players over Sh6 million

Published

2 years ago

October 26, 2020

George

The Fifa Dispute Resolution Chamber has ordered Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKFPL) side Wazito FC to pay five players it sacked over six million shillings cumulative within 45 days.

Ugandan midfielder Mansoor Safi Agu, DR Congo international Piscas Muhindo, Ghanaian Paul Acquah, Liberian Augustine Otu and Togolese defender Issofou Bourhana, through their lawyer Felix Majani, stated the club to the world football governing body seeking compensation for unfair dismissal. Of the five, only Mansoor Safi was dismissed by the club at the beginning of the year while the rest were victims of the recent massive restructuring in the team.

Their cases were presented directly to the Fifa Dispute Resolution Chamber in mid-August and the department has now expedited the matter.

In a previous interview, Wazito CEO Dennis Gicheru admitted he had received demand letters for compensation from some of the sacked players and their representatives as well communication on the same issue from Fifa. He, however, unapologetically said he was not keen on responding to the demand letters.

If Wazito fails to pay the monies within 45 days, the club will face a transfer ban over three windows. The ban will only be lifted after the amounts are paid in full.

The ruling by Fifa could set precedence as far as the speed at which cases regarding the termination of contracts, unfair dismissal of players and the ramifications of the same in the top league in Kenya are concerned.

Earlier this year, the worldwide representative organization of professional footballers, FIFPRO publicly expressed dissatisfaction with how the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) was handling such cases, with a lot of such claims remaining unsettled since 2017.

Sports

Harambee Stars exclude four top-tier players

Published

2 years ago

October 5, 2020

George

Harambee Stars will miss the services of the influential quartet of Victor Wanyama, Arnold Origi, Ayub Timbe and Michael Olunga when they face Zambia in the Africa Cup of Nations build-up match against Zambia on Friday.

The four were omitted yesterday when Football Kenya Federation released a final squad for the match set to be staged at the Moi Stadium, Kasarani behind closed doors. “The four will not be available for the match,” said FKF’S communications chief Ken Okaka.

The experienced players were part of the 34-man provisional squad released last week by coach Francis Kimanzi who will use the match to gauge his readiness for the November qualifier double against Comoros.

Origi, who plies his trade with Finland side HIFK Fotboll, was supposed to make his comeback to the team after five years in the cold. In the absence of the revered custodian, Kimanzi will pick the starter from the Zambian based Ian Otieno and national U-23 and Ulinzi Stars goalkeeper Timothy Odhiambo.

With Wanyama unavailable, all eyes will be on Kimanzi’s choice for the captaincy. Prior to his lengthy hiatus from the team, the former Maritzburg centre back Brian Mandela who made it to the team despite being unattached served as Wanyama’s deputy alongside Musa Mohammed.

Former Gor Mahia defender Joash Onyango skippered the team during last year’s Cecafa Senior Challenge in Uganda. Having established himself as Stars preferred centre forward, the unavailability of the red-hot Olunga will leave Kimanzi with no options other than to try a new formation upfront.

Algerian-based Masud Juma is likely to fill in Olunga shoes with reigning Cecafa top scorer Oscar Wamalwa, AFC Leopards striker Elvis Rupia and Zambia-based Timothy Otieno offering options.

Meanwhile Kimanzi recalled Bandari’s wing-wizard Abdallah Hassan to replace Timbe Hassan was part of the Stars team which scooped bronze in the past Cecafa championship.

Yesterday, eleven local-based players reported to camp and were screened for Covid-19 in line with the protocols sanctioned by the Ministry of Sports. Foreign-based players were expected to start checking into camp last night.

Sports

Why did Kipchoge loose the London Marathon

Published

2 years ago

October 5, 2020

George

When race commentator Steve Cram announced “this is not normal” midway through Sunday’s London Marathon it was something of an understatement as Eliud Kipchoge, the most dominant performer the distance has ever seen, was finally looking mortal.

An hour later, Kipchoge trailed home eighth in a time six minutes slower than his own world record and over a minute adrift of Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata, who won the race after a spectacular sprint finish in two hours, 05.41 minutes.

The Kenyan had finally cracked just under three miles from the end, later saying he was suffering from a blocked ear that affected his breathing and cramp in his hip, but refusing to blame the cold, wet conditions for his poor run.

It was no surprise that he looked slightly bemused as he tried to articulate what had happened, having never previously experienced what almost every other marathon runner at every level has a bad day at the office.

His record over the distance almost defies belief. He posted in his Twitter account that one of his ears blocked, and it could not open anymore.

The Ineos Challenge record holder has however promised to fight for the title another day.

“But this is how the sport is, we should accept defeat and focus for the winning next time. Thanks for the support,” Kipchoge said. He added “If you want to enjoy sport then you have to accept the results. I congratulate the top finishers, and that is how to enjoy the sport.”

He has appreciated Kenyans and his fans for the tremendous support, saying that he is taking the defeat in a positive way.

The race was won by Ethiopian Shura Kitata in a thrilling sprint finish to claim an unexpected victory ahead of Kenyan Vincent Kipchumba.