fear the wall 
26-03-2024 23:04
26-03-2024 23:04
Sven Mislintat Tipped to Return to BVB
Around the 2016/2017 time frame, a lot was going on in Dortmund. I visited, which was obviously a big deal for the city. Thomas Tuchel was the coach, and Kylian Mbappe was gearing up to announce himself to the world (at the Westfalenstadion, unfortunately). It is no secret that Thomas Tuchel is not the best with interpersonal relationships, and one of his tensest at BVB broke down when Sven Mislintat was sacked after Tuchel had handed him a training ground ban. Mislintat would go on to become head of recruitment at Arsenal, and Tuchel would depart BVB as well.
What a waste.
Now, with Aki Watzke planning his retirement and a broad reshuffle taking place in the BVB boardroom, it seems there may be a space for Mislintat to make a return to the club in a sporting director’s role. What could Mislintat’s return mean for BVB? Let’s start by looking at his first tenure with Die Schwarzgelben.
Mislintat spent 11 years with BVB, identifying some tremendous talent for the club. The former head of recruitment scouted out the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Robert Lewandowski, and Jadon Sancho, three of the finest players to wear Black and Yellow over the last two decades. Dortmund’s reputation for unearthing youth prospects with enormous ceilings was cultivated with Mislintat at the helm, and his work to support Dortmund’s transfer strategy in the early 2010s helped to financially stabilize the club. Interestingly, it was a potential transfer of Oliver Torres from Atletico Madrid that broke his relationship with Tuchel and the club. Frankly it is hard to argue with Tuchel on this one, as Oliver Torres did not go on to do all that much. Following his departure, Mislintat performed the same role at Arsenal, but with less success. During Mislintat’s spell with the Gunners, he brought in the likes of Henrikh Mikhitaryan, Peirre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sokratis Papastathopolous (are we seeing a theme here), Bernd Leno, Lucas Torreira, and Matteo Gendouzi (Transfermarkt). While Aubameyang was undeniably a success for Arsenal, he did not really move the needle for the Gunners all that much (although he did win one top scorer award in the league). Arsenal outlets report that Mislintat may have lacked freedom in transfer dealings, clashing with Arsene Wenger on a few occasions. Today, all of his signings to Arsenal are gone, and they are far better for it.
Two brief stints at Stuttgart and Ajax followed. As sporting director at Stuttgart, Mistlintat, frankly, cooked. Sasa Kalajdžić, Silas Mvumpa, Gregor Kobel and Wataru Endo are the notable recruits from his tenure in Stuttgart, two of whom have gone on the absolutely kill it at top level clubs, while Kalajdžić and Silas, despite their difficult injury records, were and are very important in their respective Stuttgart tenures. Ajax, unfortunately, is where the wheels came off. After failing to agree to a contract extension with Stuttgart, Mislintat took the sporting director role at an Ajax team that was already in a serious nosedive. Having sold off tons of talent to account for their failure to clinch a UCL spot, Mislintat did his best to rebuild the squad with a thin budget and some…hopeful acquisitions, who could not replicate the quality of recent Ajax sides. The failure of Mislintat’s plan was made clear on September 25th, 2023, when Ajax Vs. Feyenoord was abandoned due to significant fan protests at 3-0 down. Mislintat would take the fall, and was sacked by the club to appease the supporters.
For a club that is currently struggling with talent identification and squad planning, Borussia Dortmund could benefit from having the man they call “Diamond Eye”. At least, you would think so. Mislintat’s record with BVB speaks for itself, but the turbulent nature of his career since he departed the Black and Yellows raises some serious questions about how he will fit back in at BVB. One thing is for sure; if Edin Terzic couldn’t play nice with Sebastian Kehl, there is no way in hell he is going to enjoy working alongside Sven Mislintat. Questions arise around Kehl as well. If Kehl does not ascend to the CEO role and Mislintat becomes director of sport, where does that leave him? There have been scattered reports of a new heirarchy in the boardroom that could accommodate multiple heads, but reports today also suggest that Kehl’s future is not exactly assured.
Sebastian Kehl's promotion to CEO Sport is not as certain as long assumed. Kehl is not without controversy internally, which has only partly to do with the 2023 summer transfer window. @RNBVB #BVB — BVB Newsblog (@bvbnewsblog) March 26, 2024
A timely clarification of the Mislintat personnel topic will be influenced to no small extent by who becomes the new CEO Sport. Time is of the essence because planning for the new season is already underway and should ideally be driven by Mislintat.#BVB — BVB Newsblog (@bvbnewsblog) March 26, 2024
Hans-Joachim Watzke is supposed to be setting up BVB for long term success in his absence. He would do well to avoid creating a drama club in the wake of his departure, whether that includes Sven Mislintat or not.
Your Thoughts
Would you want to see Mislintat back at BVB?
What a waste.
Now, with Aki Watzke planning his retirement and a broad reshuffle taking place in the BVB boardroom, it seems there may be a space for Mislintat to make a return to the club in a sporting director’s role. What could Mislintat’s return mean for BVB? Let’s start by looking at his first tenure with Die Schwarzgelben.
Mislintat spent 11 years with BVB, identifying some tremendous talent for the club. The former head of recruitment scouted out the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Robert Lewandowski, and Jadon Sancho, three of the finest players to wear Black and Yellow over the last two decades. Dortmund’s reputation for unearthing youth prospects with enormous ceilings was cultivated with Mislintat at the helm, and his work to support Dortmund’s transfer strategy in the early 2010s helped to financially stabilize the club. Interestingly, it was a potential transfer of Oliver Torres from Atletico Madrid that broke his relationship with Tuchel and the club. Frankly it is hard to argue with Tuchel on this one, as Oliver Torres did not go on to do all that much. Following his departure, Mislintat performed the same role at Arsenal, but with less success. During Mislintat’s spell with the Gunners, he brought in the likes of Henrikh Mikhitaryan, Peirre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sokratis Papastathopolous (are we seeing a theme here), Bernd Leno, Lucas Torreira, and Matteo Gendouzi (Transfermarkt). While Aubameyang was undeniably a success for Arsenal, he did not really move the needle for the Gunners all that much (although he did win one top scorer award in the league). Arsenal outlets report that Mislintat may have lacked freedom in transfer dealings, clashing with Arsene Wenger on a few occasions. Today, all of his signings to Arsenal are gone, and they are far better for it.
Two brief stints at Stuttgart and Ajax followed. As sporting director at Stuttgart, Mistlintat, frankly, cooked. Sasa Kalajdžić, Silas Mvumpa, Gregor Kobel and Wataru Endo are the notable recruits from his tenure in Stuttgart, two of whom have gone on the absolutely kill it at top level clubs, while Kalajdžić and Silas, despite their difficult injury records, were and are very important in their respective Stuttgart tenures. Ajax, unfortunately, is where the wheels came off. After failing to agree to a contract extension with Stuttgart, Mislintat took the sporting director role at an Ajax team that was already in a serious nosedive. Having sold off tons of talent to account for their failure to clinch a UCL spot, Mislintat did his best to rebuild the squad with a thin budget and some…hopeful acquisitions, who could not replicate the quality of recent Ajax sides. The failure of Mislintat’s plan was made clear on September 25th, 2023, when Ajax Vs. Feyenoord was abandoned due to significant fan protests at 3-0 down. Mislintat would take the fall, and was sacked by the club to appease the supporters.
For a club that is currently struggling with talent identification and squad planning, Borussia Dortmund could benefit from having the man they call “Diamond Eye”. At least, you would think so. Mislintat’s record with BVB speaks for itself, but the turbulent nature of his career since he departed the Black and Yellows raises some serious questions about how he will fit back in at BVB. One thing is for sure; if Edin Terzic couldn’t play nice with Sebastian Kehl, there is no way in hell he is going to enjoy working alongside Sven Mislintat. Questions arise around Kehl as well. If Kehl does not ascend to the CEO role and Mislintat becomes director of sport, where does that leave him? There have been scattered reports of a new heirarchy in the boardroom that could accommodate multiple heads, but reports today also suggest that Kehl’s future is not exactly assured.
Sebastian Kehl's promotion to CEO Sport is not as certain as long assumed. Kehl is not without controversy internally, which has only partly to do with the 2023 summer transfer window. @RNBVB #BVB — BVB Newsblog (@bvbnewsblog) March 26, 2024
A timely clarification of the Mislintat personnel topic will be influenced to no small extent by who becomes the new CEO Sport. Time is of the essence because planning for the new season is already underway and should ideally be driven by Mislintat.#BVB — BVB Newsblog (@bvbnewsblog) March 26, 2024
Hans-Joachim Watzke is supposed to be setting up BVB for long term success in his absence. He would do well to avoid creating a drama club in the wake of his departure, whether that includes Sven Mislintat or not.
Your Thoughts
Would you want to see Mislintat back at BVB?