The curious case of Sebastien Haller and his struggles at Borussia Dortmund

Sebastien Haller’s professional career began with a stint at French side Auxerre before he joined Utrecht in the Eredivisie, winning the Di Tommaso trophy for best player. It wasn’t until 2017, however, that he became a mainstay with Bundesliga fans after joining Eintracht Frankfurt. There he made a huge impact and helped them win the DFB-Pokal title. His exploits earned him a move to the English Premier League, as he joined West Ham United.

Haller’s time in England was far from successful, as he quickly fell out of favor, but still managed ten goals over the season and then joined Ajax in 2020. The Dutch side fostered Haller into a world-class striker, as he found the net 32 times in just 50 appearances, wining the Eredivisie twice and the domestic cup once. Haller likely impressed the Borussia Dortmund hierarchy by scoring in both of Ajax’s Champions League wins against the Black and Yellows. And the BVB bosses made the decision to sign him following Erling Haaland’s move to Manchester City.

Haller became one of BVB’s most expensive signings in history. It made sense from all perspectives – The Ivorian was in top form and Dortmund needed a strong striker to replace the stardom-bound Haaland. Unfortunately, less than two weeks into training, Haller was diagnosed with a malignant testicular tumor and was forced to stop training immediatly to seek medical attention.

Yet, in what was one of the world’s greatest sporting comeback stories, Sebastien Haller made his competative debut for BVB in January of 2023, just six months after his cancer diagnoses. This was a much earlier return than many had anticipated, but the club had backed Haller, the fans were behind him, and this was a squad legitimately challenging for the Bundesliga title. Haller needed some time to reach his top form again, but things were very promising with the striker scoring nine goals in nineteen appearances.

The final matchday was set to be the pinnacle of this comeback story as Haller was leading his new team to their first Bundesliga title in over a decade – but things went awry. Fans shared the heartbreak of Borussia Dortmund’s final matchday capitulation last season, including a missed penalty kick from Haller, that could have secured the title, and with it, the perfect comeback… Six months later, Haller finally got his comeback story, just not with Borussia Dortmund.

Sebastien Haller’s form was poor with Borussia Dortmund to open the current season as the striker was clearly struggling for fitness, but he still earned a call-up to the Ivory Coast squad for the Africa Cup of Nations. While Haller sat out the group stage with injury, he watched his team pick up a 2-0 win against Guinea-Bissau before losing to Nigeria 0-1 and Equatorial Guinea 0-4.

The Ivorians barely qualified for the knockouts. By the last-16, Haller was fit again, scoring in the penalty shootout win over Senegal. He then played the entire second half of Ivory Coast’s 2-1 quarterfinal win over Mali, before starting the semifinal against the DR Congo, where he scored the only goal, leading Ivory Coast to the AFCON final.

The final was a rematch with Nigeria, but what was different about this game? Sebastien Haller started… AND scored the winning goal in Ivory Coast’s 2-1 win, making them African Champions. His comeback was complete! Yet, after scoring the 81st minute winner, Haller was substituted seven minutes later with a recurrence of his ankle injury, one that is keeping him out of action currently.

This brings us back to Borussia Dortmund, where Haller continues to struggle. I speak for many BVB fans in being happy for Sebastien Haller. As much as I want him to perform well in black and yellow, I’m excited to see him hift a trophy with his national team. Nobody expected Haller to return to his top form after a diagnosis like cancer, but he’s managed just that, albeit not in a Dortmund jersey.

So why has Haller struggled so much this season? Haller has made eleven league appearances without a goal or assist. With 354 total minutes, Haller’s expected goals is still lower than one. Why is this?

It’s a stark contrast between Haller’s performances in AFCON, and what he’s shown for Borussia Dortmund this season. Is it simply a matter of Haller’s inability to reach full fitness? It’s hard to blame someone for this after recovering from cancer only a year ago.

I may suggest that Edin Terzic doesn’t know how to properly utilize or impliment strikers in his matchday tactics. Two consecutive seasons have seen this team panic-purchase a striker in the final days of the summer transfer window.

While Niclas Füllkrug has worked out much better than Anthony Modeste, I still think perhaps Terzic is focusing on the wrong problem. Without Haller, the squad still had Moukoko and Malen last season, and this season, they’ve added Füllkrug. I’d argue that these profiles are significantly different, yet they’re asked to perform the same role. Each has strengths and weaknesses, but I don’t think Terzic focuses enough on effectively utilizing individual talent. With what we witnessed at AFCON, there’s no reason Haller can’t be scoring pretty goals at Dortmund too. Strikers under Terzic struggle.

The blame does not lie completely with Terzic, however. Everything about signing Haller made sense, and nobody could have anticipated the cancer diagnosis, which derailed Haller’s career. I like Haller quite a bit, I like rooting for him and I want to see him succeed… but I question if keeping him around will benefit Borussia Dortmund moving forward.

As it stands, Sebastien Haller is one of Borussia Dortmund’s highest earners. With a contract signed until 2026, Sebastian Kehl, Edin Terzic, and co. will have to determine if the Ivorian is worth standing behind in the hopes he delivers in the next year. Or if they would be better off offloading him for some much-needed cash to bolster the squad. He very well could find his form for Dortmund, but it’s a gamble for someone who is almost thirty, and is unlikely to get too many opportunities with Füllkrug already in the side.