Emre Can

Emre Can has been at Borussia Dortmund since January 2020. In his time at the club, he has played as a full-back, number six, in the double pivot and in the eight, and most recently established himself in central defence. “Versatility is both a blessing and a curse,” he told the club’s member magazine BORUSSIA. In the summer of 2023, he extended his contract early by two years until 2026 and took over the captain’s armband from Marco Reus. He is considered an all-rounder, a player with personality, who takes on responsibility and leads by example.

Can was involved in 23 goals (15 goals, eight assists) in 147 Bundesliga games for BVB up to and including the 2024/25 season – a remarkable record for a defensive player. He has successfully converted all nine of his penalties in the Bundesliga. In 2023/24, he reached a top speed of 35.2 km/h; only Karim Adeyemi was faster.

Emre Can was born on 12 January 1994 in Frankfurt am Main. “It was a tough place,” he said of his life in Frankfurt’s Nordweststadt district. “You learn to be strong; you learn respect, and you learn to take the right path – or the wrong one. Fortunately, I chose the right path. But I saw other young people, school friends, turn to drugs. I had my family and the right friends to support me. As a footballer, I learned that you have to give everything to win. There’s no doubt that you can learn from defeat. But winning is much better. I hate losing.”

Can played for Eintracht’s youth team for three years (2006 to 2009) before moving to Bayern Munich’s U17 team. In Munich, he made his first appearance for the senior team on 12 August 2012 in a 2-1 Super Cup win against Borussia Dortmund. In 2013/14, he joined Bayer 04 Leverkusen and was signed by Liverpool just one year later, where he played a total of 167 games between 2014 and 2018. “In England, it’s all about playing exciting football, tackling and precise long balls. It’s different in Italy, where tactics are more important. I’m very grateful for the experiences I’ve had at all the clubs I’ve played for. I have matured as a footballer and as a person. The years abroad were cool.” He moved to Juventus in the Italian Serie A for the 2018/19 season, where he played a decisive role in winning the 2019 championship as a regular starter, but was only selected twice for the starting line-up after a change of coach in the 2019/20 season.

Emre Can has played for all of Germany's youth national teams since the U15s and made his debut for the senior national team on 4 September 2015 in his hometown of Frankfurt in a European Championship qualifier against Poland. He was a member of the squad at the 2017 Confederations Cup, where he helped Germany lift the trophy. In the years that followed, he described his relationship with the DFB national team as “on-off.” “I know I was often written off. Even when Julian didn’t invite me in October, I thought I would come back and prove myself to everyone.” And that’s exactly what happened: nominated by national coach Julian Nagelsmann two days before the start of Euro 2024, he came on as a substitute in the opening game and scored the final goal in a 5-1 win over Scotland.