One current and five former players from Borussia Dortmund have made the Ballon d’Or shortlist, prompting reflections on what could have been at Signal Iduna Park.
Dortmund forward Serhou Guirassy was included on the list, landing in the 21st position, ahead of notable players like Virgil van Dijk, Florian Wirtz, and Michael Olise. This raises the question of the formidable team the Bundesliga club could have built had they managed to retain their finest talents.
Here are the five ex-Borussia Dortmund players who are among the 30 nominees for the Ballon d’Or, along with their rankings:
Ousmane Dembele – 1st
“Thank you to all the clubs I’ve played for: Stade Rennes, Borussia Dortmund, and the club I always dreamed of playing for, Barcelona,” stated Dembele during his acceptance speech for the prestigious Golden Ball award.
The current winner of France Football’s accolade serves as a symbol of Dortmund’s post-Klopp era.
Like many others who followed him, including several names featured here, Dortmund secured Dembele while he was a promising teenager at Rennes. He still stands as their record signing, at a mere €35 million.
It took under a year for the French forward to demonstrate his value was several times that amount.
“Have described Ousmane Dembele as future Ballon d’Or winner. I believe it, but does anyone else?” tweeted European commentator Kevin Hatchard in April 2017.
Just a few months later, he found his way to Barcelona, where the Catalan club invested a significant portion of the record fee they received for Neymar in his purchase as the next big talent.
While Dembele had his share of highlights at Barcelona, contributing to three La Liga titles, it is fair to say he truly found his consistent Ballon d’Or-caliber form at PSG.
One can only speculate about how his career trajectory might have differed had he viewed Dortmund as a terminal destination rather than a transitional phase.
Achraf Hakimi – 6th
Dortmund benefited from Hakimi’s two-year loan from Real Madrid.
The Morocco international, now regarded as one of the best right-backs in the world, reportedly wanted to make the switch permanent; however, Dortmund hesitated at Los Blancos’ €40 million asking price.
In hindsight, this appears to be a critical mistake. He’s certainly one that slipped away.
Robert Lewandowski – 17th
Lewandowski’s potential for greatness was clear the night he netted four goals against Real Madrid.
How can a club retain a striker of that caliber? One who would eventually rank as the third all-time top scorer in Europe’s premier leagues? Spoiler: they cannot.
After propelling Klopp’s Dortmund to consecutive Bundesliga titles, he fulfilled his contract and made a move to arch-rivals Bayern, amassing 238 goals in 253 Bundesliga games, playing an essential role in their historic run of eight consecutive titles.
Most of those wins came at Dortmund’s expense—a painful reminder.
Jude Bellingham – 23rd
He belongs in the same category as Dembele.
The young midfielder joined Dortmund as a teen, rapidly elevating his status with each passing season, ultimately being sold for an enormous profit.
While it may lack a romantic touch, it exemplifies Dortmund’s selling model functioning precisely as designed.
The only lament will be the lack of silverware during Bellingham’s evolution into a world-class talent; he only claimed the DFB Pokal title during his three years in Westphalia.
In his debut season with Real Madrid, Bellingham secured both La Liga and Champions League honors, and his contributions earned him a spot on the Ballon d’Or podium, marking him as the first Englishman in the top three since Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in 2005.
Erling Haaland – 26th
From Lewandowski to Aubameyang to Haaland to Guirassy today, Dortmund has effectively recruited reliable No.9s. There have not been many periods without one.
In an alternate reality where Dortmund kept their top players, they might not have needed more than one at a time.
Haaland could very well have been the finest of them all.
After making a decisive move to acquire Haaland when he was the hottest commodity in European football at Red Bull Salzburg, it was understood that Dortmund was merely providing the extraordinary Norwegian goal-scorer with a temporary platform before he advanced to the highest echelons.
He upheld his end by becoming a phenomenal force for Dortmund, scoring 50 goals in his first 50 Bundesliga games, a record in a major European league that he would later surpass himself at Manchester City.
