Before the game against Paris Saint-Germain First high school, then PSG: BVB talent Kjell Wätjen is flown to Paris
In the game against Augsburg, Kjell Wätjen showed what a great talent he is
© Bernd Thissen / DPA
When Borussia Dortmund plays against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday evening, BVB’s youngest jewel will also be there. Kjell Wätjen doesn’t even let a high school math exam stop him.
It was the interaction of generations: Kjell Wätjen, an 18-year-old midfield talent from the BVB youth team, played a perfectly timed pass to the starting Marco Reus, 34 years old. He took the ball unchallenged and chipped it elegantly over the Augsburg goalkeeper Tomas Koubek into the goal. Reus’s goal marked the high point in the good mood in the 5-1 win at Signal-Iduna-Park. It was a game in which nothing was at stake for either team, the weather was great and Reus led a second team in which some BVB professionals wanted to show coach Edin Terzic that they were better than just the second team to stand in line.
Perfect conditions for Wätjen to make his Bundesliga debut in the starting eleven. The young German-Swede first attracted attention with his appearance in the Bundesliga. A decision made it clear how much the super talent is already trusted in Dortmund: Wätjen flew to the important Champions League game against Paris Saint-Germain just three days after his professional debut. The semi-final second leg will take place there in the evening (live on Amazon Prime from 9 p.m.). BVB won the first leg 1-0 and the dream of reaching the final at Wembley is alive. Terzic spared almost all of his regular staff at the weekend.
Kjell Wätjen not scheduled for the Champions League
Wätjens wasn’t even planned for Paris. The reason: the Abitur exam. On Tuesday morning he wrote a math exam. But Terzic apparently changed his mind after Wätjen’s performance against Augsburg and had the young professional travel there on a special plane. “He has written a great story, he has just played his first Bundesliga game,” emphasized sports director Sebastian Kehl: “It will be a great experience for him. He deserves it.”
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Wätjen, who comes from Gevelsberg south of Hagen in the Dortmund catchment area, has experienced rapid development. He only received a professional contract (until 2028) at the end of March. He has been playing for BVB since 2015 and has gone through all of the youth teams. He became European champion with the U17 national team last year and won the championship title with the Dortmund U19 team this year. Now write your high school diploma and get a taste of the Champions League for the first time.
BVB needs at least a draw
Wätjen could experience BVB’s greatest success since the club last made it to the final in 2013. At that time, Dortmund lost the duel against Bayern, also at Wembley. Before that happens, Terzic’s team has to get at least a draw. This will be hard enough. Both teams already played against each other in the group phase. There was a clear 2-0 defeat in Paris, and Dortmund fought a difficult 1-1 draw in the second leg.
Sources: “Kicker”, N-TV
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