The stage is set for a BVB great to say goodbye. Before the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and Werder Bremen, a sold-out Signal Iduna Park of 81,365 supporters will bid a formal farewell to Nuri Sahin, who joined Werder Bremen on 31 August.

"Nuri is an exemplary player," said sporting director Michael Zorc, adding: "We'll take this opportunity to bid him a formal farewell on the pitch before the match." Back when the midfielder departed for the Weser in the summer, the sporting director said: "Nuri is a player who has always earned tremendous respect at BVB − from his time in the youth set-up right through to the present day. A great Black & Yellow who'll always remain a part of our club and its history!"

A loan spell at Eredivisie outfit Feyenoord (2007-2008) and short stints at Real Madrid (2011-12) and Liverpool (2012) aside, the 30-year-old had been a Borussia Dortmund player since the age of 12. He was signed by SV Werder head coach Florian Kohfeldt, who is a big admirer, in August 2018. The Bremen boss is cited by German football magazine kicker as saying: "Nuri has 100 percent fulfilled the expectations off the pitch, because since the first day he's been a contributor to our success in the dressing room and set an example with his absolute professionalism and will to win. You can have chats with him about football that extend way beyond the usual player-coach discussions. On the pitch, too, I'm very satisfied with Nuri. One cannot forget that he didn't get the chance to have a full pre-season with us. And yet he's still managed to deliver some very, very good performances for us."

Youngest player, youngest goalscorer

image

Sahin, who was born in Lüdenscheid and grew up in Meinerzhagen, went for his first BVB trial session at the age of seven. "I was born in the Sauerland. There you either become a Dortmund or a Schalke supporter. I'm super happy that I became a Dortmund supporter," he explained. When the club set up a transport service a few years later, Sahin, then a high school student, joined the club of his heart at C-Youth level. He went on to make his full debut in the Bundesliga at the age of 16 years and 355 days and then, aged 17 years and 81 days, he became the youngest player in the history of German professional football to score a goal. He's also the youngest appearance-maker and goalscorer for Turkey, having netted on 8 October 2005 in a 2-0 victory over Germany.

In the 2010/11 title-winning season, Sahin was the metronome in the BVB midfield and was voted Bundesliga Player of the Season by his fellow professionals. Other titles won at club level include the Dutch Cup with Feyenoord in 2008, La Liga with Real Madrid in 2012 and the DFB Cup with BVB in 2017.

Hans-Joachim Watzke said: "We wish Nuri nothing but the very best for his future career at SV Werder. The doors at BVB will always be open for him."
Boris Rupert