This Dortmund teenager was rated 9 out of 10 on his league debut
Konstantinos Karetsas was handed a nine out of ten by Get German Football news at the weekend. They described his first hour in the Bundesliga as 'unreal'. Bundesliga.com named him Man of the Match. The impact that the 18-year-old Greek whizzkid had on the game, deserved all of the plaudits.
As early as the ninth minute, Karetsas was at it. He and Serhou Guirassy worked a quick one-two through the middle, then the striker slid his finish into the far corner.
The Yellow Wall now knows what Dortmund has bought in this kid.
What the debut actually looked like
Karetsas had six shots, more than anybody else on the pitch, and laid on three further chances for teammates. When Kovac rested him with a quarter of an hour to go, the game lost momentum.
The youngster won the clear majority of his ground duels too. For a slight left-footer, that is a surprising stat.
Dortmund's player of the match spent Saturday drifting inside into the half-spaces instead of hanging out wide. Karetsas is deadly in these half-spaces. His profile on FotMob.com logs a double-figure assist haul at Genk last season.
This is worth thinking about: a teenager arriving in a new country, a new league, and a new language, then producing the best individual performance on the pitch in his first week. Most need until Christmas before they feel comfortable. What Karetsas did on Saturday was nothing less than extraordinary.
Why the fee already looks cheap
Genk will feel that they did very well out of the deal to sell Karetsas to Dortmund. BVB got a footballer tied down until 2031, who had already impressed in Europe.
BVB Buzz watched him score on his debut in the friendly against Arsenal and the connection between fans and the player was instant. Supporters have been excited to see him start at Westfalenstadion weeks before a competitive ball was kicked.
Gregor Kobel called him incredible during pre-season. He's not the type to give gushing compliments.
BVB fans must be careful not to expect performances like this one every week. Karetsas is still growing, finds himself in a new league, and circumstances will change. Defenders will start doubling up on him now that they've seen what he can do given space.
However, none of this takes away from his performance on Saturday. Julian Ryerson and Jobe Bellingham now have somebody ahead of them who can beat a man or pick the right pass.
Dortmund have bought a player who adds pace to the whole side. Karetsas is the type of player who only looks to attack, and when he does, space opens up. On this evidence, Genk sold him too cheaply and their loss is very much Dortmund's gain.
Verdict: Keep Karetsas fit and nobody at the club will think twice about the fee until a Premier League side offers £100m.
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