For four and a half years Thomas Delaney played for Bremen and Dortmund in the Bundesliga. On Wednesday he returns to Germany with his new club FC Sevilla. Before that, he spoke to kicker about the duel with VfL Wolfsburg, his role in Sevilla and BVB, among other things.
Just in time, Thomas Delaney appears in the digital conference room to talk to kicker about the upcoming Champions League guest game of his new club FC Sevilla at VfL Wolfsburg (9 pm, LIVE! at kicker). “The clocks tick a little differently here in Spain,” says the 30-year-old Dane, who has now played for Bremen and Dortmund for four and a half years, “but I’ve kept my German punctuality so far.” In German, the midfielder then reveals why he left BVB for Sevilla, what he learned from the European Championship weeks in the summer and what he will do should his ex-club Dortmund win a title this season.
Thomas Delaney, let’s start straight with the unpleasant part …
You mean my yellow card? (laughs)
Yes! You received two yellows within seconds of each other last Saturday for fouling, bleating and then applauding the referee. After 65 minutes and with the score at 1:0 for your team against Espanyol Barcelona, you were sent to the showers early.
Yes, that was my mistake and it still bothers me. I was too emotional at that moment. I watched the rest of the game on TV and couldn’t sit still in the dressing room. It was pure stress. Only after the second goal could I calm down a bit. After the game (Sevilla won 2-0, editor’s note) I thanked my teammates and apologised. Because the red card made it unnecessarily difficult for us.
Mahmoud Dahoud, your former teammate at BVB, had something similar happen almost at the same time.
Yes, that was a funny coincidence. But as I said, it really annoys me that something like that happened to me. That was completely unnecessary.
The game against Espanyol was only your fifth for Sevilla. You only moved from BVB to Andalusia shortly before the transfer deadline. Why did you choose this club in particular?
When we played against Sevilla with BVB last season, I realised that they were a very good team. That’s also what tipped the scales now. Sevilla is a top team in Spain that has ambitions and plays internationally. Both were extremely important for me. In addition, the city is really cool and the weather is usually very good. That also helps. (laughs)
You were with BVB for three years and said a very emotional goodbye to Dortmund. How difficult was it for you to leave?
I was hurt in a way, because I wasn’t unhappy in Dortmund. On the contrary. Neither personally in the city nor within the team. BVB is a great club and it makes me proud that I was able to play for them for three years. In the end, it was the little things that tipped the scales: I could foresee that I wouldn’t play the biggest role athletically. But I’m 30 years old – I wanted to play more than the club had planned for me. That’s why I wanted to change.
What did the club think of this idea?
Not so good, I think. But they still gave me the opportunity. The fact that most of them thought it was a shame that I was leaving was additionally a nice sign of appreciation for me. I will always remember this club positively.
A farewell in front of a full crowd was denied them for the time being …
I spoke to Sebastian (Kehl, head of BVB’s professional players’ department, editor’s note) at least three times on the day of my transfer about how unfortunate I thought it was. It hurt to do without a full stadium for a year and a half. Because I know how great it feels to play in front of 81,000 people and celebrate victories. The fact that that was not possible at the farewell still hurts me.
Do you still follow the development at BVB from afar?
Yes, I always watch the highlights of the games. I also watch Bremen a lot, even though nobody I know from my time at Werder actually plays there anymore.
What do you think your former team-mates in Dortmund are capable of?
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you and hope that the championship will happen in the near future – even if FC Bayern is the favourite again this season. Dortmund has a lot of great people on board, I can’t say anything bad about this club and the people there. I’d be really happy if there’s something for you to celebrate at the end of the season. Maybe I’ll come to Borsigplatz then and join in if it fits in with the time. (laughs)
How often are you approached about Erling Haaland in Spain?
Often, Erl interests people here a lot. But I also get asked a lot about Jude Bellingham, who made a mighty impression in the games against Sevilla. He throws his heart on the pitch, people like that here.
On Wednesday you return to Germany for the first time since your transfer. In the Champions League you are challenged by VfL Wolfsburg. Has your coach Julen Lopetegui already tapped into your insider knowledge of German football?
No, it hasn’t happened yet. After the game against Espanyol, we were off for a while. But maybe he’ll make up for it before kick-off.
You drew against Salzburg at the start of the top flight. How great is the pressure before the game in Wolfsburg?
The game against Salzburg was certainly not easy for us, also because we also conceded a red card there. In Germany it will be difficult now as well. Wolfsburg is not as well-known in Spain as FC Bayern or Dortmund. But they have a very good team with high individual quality and a good width in the squad. They will present us with challenges, we have to be prepared for that.
Wolfsburg are coached by Mark van Bommel. He was an Aggressive Leader like you as a player.
As a type of player I’m certainly quite similar to him, that’s true. We both have the madness in us on the pitch. But the good one… (laughs) However, my role models back then were others: Gennaro Gattuso, for example, or Andrea Pirlo.
“Maximilian Arnold can also score from 40 metres “
Van Bommel was seen as the first candidate for ejection after the switch error in the DFB Cup against Münster. A strong start in the league follows.
Wolfsburg do have quality – and have done for years. Wout Weghorst alone is a challenge for any team in the world. The midfield is also top-notch, Maximilian Arnold, for example, can also score a goal from a free kick from 40 metres. We’ve always had a hard time against Dortmund, even though we’ve often won in the end. For me, they are a typical German team. They don’t have the one top star, but overall they have a high level in their squad.
Sevilla has been considered a Europa League specialist in recent years. Some scoff that Sevilla would only play in the Champions League in order to continue in the Europa League later on as group third…
(laughs) Winning titles is not so bad after all – and I don’t have to stress how hard it is to win the Champions League, I think. My impression is that people here are very proud that Sevilla were able to win these titles in the Europa League. Especially since it’s not just the champions from Denmark and Sweden who are in the mix, but also really big teams. But of course the demand we make of ourselves is that we get through the group stage in the Champions League.
How difficult was it for you to find your place in the team because of the late start at Sevilla?
First of all, I realised that Sevilla is a very Spanish club. Spanish is spoken here, so I really need to work on my language skills – even if the most important things are translated to me in English. Apart from that, I feel very welcome here. I have been well received by the team. And we have already found a house. That is very important for me to feel comfortable. I’m not someone who likes to stay in a hotel.
In Seville you met the ex-Schalker Ivan Rakitic. Did you have to listen to a crack about your Dortmund past when you started?
(laughs) No, not that. But I actually saw two or three Schalke jerseys with his name on the back in the audience at our game against Espanyol. Dortmund jerseys with my name on them weren’t there yet. I still have to work on that …
In Dortmund you once said that you sometimes felt like a dog owner walking ten puppies on a leash. In Seville, your task should be a different one.
Yes, our average age is much higher than in Dortmund. Especially our leading players – like Rakitic or Jesus Navas – are well over 30. Of course, that makes my role different, but here, too, I’m expected to lead the team because I came to Sevilla from a big club. I think I was brought in as a leader. And I want to live up to that.
In Germany, Sevilla FC doesn’t have the best reputation, because in recent duels – against BVB, for example – it has often distinguished itself as being characterised by time-playing and nitpicking. Does that do the club justice?
No, I don’t think so. I perceive Sevilla as a very family club, not that dissimilar to BVB. There are many people working here who come from the region, people give everything for the club. And in terms of sport, work is also highly valued here – even if Spanish football is slower overall than in Germany. At the same time, the ambitions are also very high. Our fans expect us to play good football and win games.
Despite the supremacy of Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona?
Yes, because of course these three usually settle the titles among themselves, but the situation is more open overall than in Germany, for example, where FC Bayern is clearly number 1. Sevilla has already shown in the past that it can be at the top. And we are pursuing this goal again now, when I look at our transfers and the width of our squad.
“I want to play for titles and be in the Champions League “
The competition in central midfield is fierce for you too.
That’s true, but my role here is different from Dortmund, where I was usually the six. In Sevilla, I’m used a bit further forward – similar to the national team. I can take part in the offensive game as an eighth and go wide – just the way I love it.
You have signed for four years – from this I infer that you want to settle in Andalusia with your family for a longer period of time.
Yes, I hope to have many good years here. The aspirations that the club has fit my ambitions. I want to play for titles and be in the Champions League. The conditions here are very good for that. And I also feel that I can still develop my game here despite being 30 years old.
Many had actually expected you to leave Dortmund for England.
I think those expectations were based on an old story from my days in Bremen. At that time, Everton FC wanted to sign me and in the course of that I said that I would like to play in England, but also in the USA or Japan. The only thing was that it wouldn’t be possible to do all that. I later switched to BVB because it was the right move for me at the time. Just like it was the right thing now to go to Sevilla.
You can calmly admit that you actually only plan your moves according to where Ludwig Augustinsson plays. This is the third time they have met in Seville.
(laughs) That’s right. But in Copenhagen at that time I was first. Likewise in Bremen, even though we were on the same plane to Bremen first. The fact that we have now met again in Seville is really cool.
You’ve had an extremely intense summer: The European Championship – with the drama surrounding Christian Eriksen and the narrow semi-final exit against England -, the change: Have you had time to reflect on everything yet?
Good question … A lot of things came together. But I think I was able to work through it quite well. After what happened with Christian in Copenhagen, we all couldn’t think about football at first. I think all of us expected to lose the following game against Belgium 0:6, because our minds were somewhere else. But after the group stage, things changed – Christian felt better, normality returned. From then on, the focus went back to the sporting side of things.
Did you learn anything for your career from those weeks at the Euro, where sorrow and joy were so close together? Or even something for life?
You can’t prepare yourself for a situation like the one that happened to us back then. It certainly brought us much closer together and we learned to be more honest with each other. In football there is often this attitude that you have to be tough and strong and must never show weakness. Back then, we were open in the group about how difficult it was for us to play again. The whole world was looking at us – and we showed them our emotions. The wall that you often build around yourself as a sportsman who is in the public eye had fallen. I felt then that such a European Championship is of course something big, but not everything. Life is so much more. My daughter teaches me that every day anew.
Do you feel that you and your teammates have contributed a little to society’s awareness of mental health through your public handling of your emotions?
I hope so. I think especially after this Corona pandemic, many people felt the need to talk about how they were doing during that time. Many were alone, had worries. We footballers are no different from other people, even if we earn very good money. We run and fight and storm around the pitch in front of the public, but we also sometimes have problems that need to be talked about in order to work through them.
