Former Borussia Dortmund chief scout Sven Mislintat has explicitly praised the club's current sporting direction. The current TV pundit called the appointment of sporting director Ole Book in March a "top investment" and defended the withdrawal from the transfer saga surrounding Said El Mala as a smart move.
"It was brave to bring in someone who had previously only been fishing in second-division waters," Mislintat said on SPORT1's Doppelpass. He added: "He always had an incredible vision with the squads in Elversberg, so a top investment by Dortmund." Mislintat, most recently at Fortuna Düsseldorf, sees Book as a planner with a clear vision and the necessary courage for BVB.
Smart Withdrawal from El Mala
The 51-year-old views the club's decision not to pursue Said El Mala at any cost this summer as particularly positive. The player was probably the first choice, but not at any price, according to Mislintat. Walking away and subsequently allocating the budget to alternatives like Giannis Konstantelias and Joey Veerman shows the club has a Plan B and acts with financial discipline. Another SPORT1 expert, Stefan Effenberg, supported this view, noting that BVB pulled the plug at around 50 million euros and reoriented themselves.
Mislintat sees this as part of a larger strategy. BVB is helping itself in somewhat less conspicuous markets with high quality, he said, citing Konstantinos Karetsas as an example. Such players can ignite something special at Dortmund again.
Perfect Start Underpins the Course
The sporting results currently justify the new direction. Under head coach Niko Kovac, Borussia Dortmund started the Bundesliga season perfectly with four wins from four games and leads the table with twelve points. The team has scored nine goals and conceded only two. The current form of five consecutive wins and a two-point lead over Bayern Munich shows the positive development. The latest victory came on September 19th with a 1-0 away win at VfB Stuttgart, courtesy of a goal from Maximilian Beier.
The next challenge awaits on October 9th with a home match against eighth-placed Werder Bremen. Alongside the sporting success, the club has also solidified its leadership by extending the contracts of Carsten Cramer, Lars Ricken, and Thomas Treß, with Cramer promoted to succeed Hans-Joachim Watzke as chairman of the management board.
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