Erling Haaland became a “burden” on the Dortmund dressing room prior to his £51m move to Manchester City this summer, at least according to the club’s sporting director Sebastian Kehl.
Despite netting a staggering 86 goals in 89 matches during his two-and-a-half year stint in Germany, Kehl said Dortmund were actually quite relieved when they sold Haaland as the he’d “become the subject of every conversation” at the club.
“In the end, the Haaland issue became a burden in the locker room,” Kehl told German outlet BILD.
“As much as we always loved Haaland and he was successful with us, in the end, he became a burden on the dressing room, the club and the whole environment.
“He had become the subject of every conversation. Outside the club, almost everything was exclusively focused on him. In the end, the timing of the transfer was right for both parties. And we are all happy for Erling that he continues to be so successful.”
Kehl added that Dortmund would’ve loved to have kept the Norwegian striker, though admitted it would’ve been impossible to do so, given the amount of interest from elite clubs across Europe.
Haaland has taken to the Premier League like a duck to water this season, scoring 12 goals in his first eight matches, including back-to-back hattricks against Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest.
