On Tuesday, Borussia Dortmund’s team bus was attacked with explosives, injuring defender Marc Bartra. Their UEFA Champions League match against AS Monaco was postponed, but only by one day. Dortmund was forced by UEFA to play the match on Wednesday, and likely would have suffered a forfeit if they decided not to take the pitch.
Borussia Dortmund furious with UEFA for making them play 1 day after explosive attack
“We are people who have families, who have kids in the house.” said Sokratis. “And we are not animals.”
Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images
”We were never asked, we were informed by a text message that the UEFA made a decision in Switzerland,” said Dortmund manager Thomas Tuchel. “It felt lousy. And that sticks with us. Minutes after the attacks the only question was whether the game could go through or not. We were treated as if a beer can was thrown at the bus.”
Dortmund got off to a slow start in the match against Monaco, conceding two goals in the first half. They played much better in the second half, but still lost the match 3-2. Given how flat they looked out of the gate and post-match comments from Tuchel and Dortmund players, it seems reasonable to assume they were affected by being asked to play so soon after the attack.
“It was the most difficult day that I have lived in my life and I hope that nobody else has to live this day,” said defender Sokratis about the explosives incident. “After yesterday I don’t have any more space to think about the game. They have to understand that we are not animals. We are people who have families, who have kids in the house. And we are not animals.”
In this postgame interview, it’s clear to see on Nuri Sahin’s face and hear in his voice how much he was affected by the incident. He says “it’s hard to find the right words” to discuss it and that he’ll “never forget those faces” of his teammates after the blasts.
The argument for making Dortmund play again so quickly is that it would be unfair to Monaco to alter the schedule even further, and unfair to all of the other Champions League teams if the semifinals had to be rescheduled as a result. But UEFA didn’t take the time to find out whether or not Dortmund’s rivals would be OK with that. They just made a decision, and in doing so, may have done the very thing they were trying to avoid — create an unfair competition.
See More:
