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Lots of running, lots of fighting: Ryerson remains true to his word
Inconspicuous at first glance and rather unknown to many BVB fans at the time, a newcomer will be on the scene in Dortmund-Brackel on 17 January 2023. Wearing a dark turtleneck sweater and round glasses, the young blonde-haired man signs his contract before donning the Black & Yellow jersey for the first time for an interview with BVB-TV. How is his name pronounced correctly? The first question is easy, the answer a little shy. ‘Rie-er-son.’
Meanwhile, no Borussia Dortmund has to ask how to say the name of the 1.83-metre-tall Norwegian, who left home at the age of 15 to pursue a playing career. Julian Ryerson is now a fixed member of the BVB squad at left and right back. The former Union Berlin player has appeared in Black & Yellow 62 times in all competitions, 60 of them in the starting XI. The name rolls off the fans' tongues easily when Nobby Dickel calls out number 26 at home games – a number once worn by Lukasz Piszczek. These are big footsteps to follow in.
Why did he choose BVB? Ryerson laughs and shrugs his shoulders – the answer is obvious to the Norwegian international. "It's a huge club.’"From a sporting point of view, it is of course a step forward for him, and the fans also made a good impression on the Norwegian when he was a visitor toSIGNAL IDUNA PARK with Union Berlin. The next question is easy again: how he would describe his style of football. The answer comes like a shot: "Intense" and "aggressive." Lots of running, lots of fighting – in short: "I'll give it my all".
Meanwhile, the people of Dortmund know what to expect from the Norwegian: week after week, Ryerson shows exactly what BVB fans appreciate – and what he promised in his first interview: Ryerson runs and fights a lot. In the 2023/2024 Bundesliga season, the Norway international "only" played in 21 of 34 games due to an inner ligament injury, but still covered 226.1 kilometres. That's more than 10 per game. Ryerson, who never shies away from putting in the hard yards, is also a threat in front of goal. He scored four times in the 2023/24 Bundesliga season – the goal he scored to put BVB two goals clear away to TSG Hoffenheim to make it 3-1 (while playing a man down), and the goal to make it 2-0 away to Bayern Munich, both came about through an incredible energy and desire to run. In the Champions League games last season, Ryerson and his teammates formed an immovable defensive wall in the decisive semi-final home leg against Paris Saint-Germain.
Back to the first interview in January 2023. The most important question came last, of course: what are Julian Ryerson's objectives once he gets started at BVB? "Definitely sporting success." He's a footballer, he wants to win. That's what he's looking forward to with BVB. Ryerson looks expectantly at the camera, but that's about it. The first BVB interview is in the bag. Five days later, the full-back is in the starting line-up for the first time and celebrates his first victory in Black & Yellow in a 4-3 win over Augsburg. Three days later, he scores his first goal for the club in a 2-1 win at Mainz.
626 days since his first BVB interview, Ryerson has celebrated a total of 49 victories in Black & Yellow, reached the Champions League final, and came close to winning the Bundesliga title in the summer of 2023. The trophies are still missing, but the hunger remains, as does Ryerson's style of play: intense, aggressive, running a lot, fighting a lot. At least until 2028.