“I’d just come from the toilet”: Borussia Dortmund match-winner Konstantinos Karetsas was nearly not brought on by Niko Kovac
Borussia Dortmund match-winner Konstantinos Karetsas was quite surprised by the timing of his introduction against Betis Sevilla in the Champions League on Wednesday evening (2-1).
After just over half an hour, the Greece international was set to replace the injured Serhou Guirassy, but first he had to relieve himself, as he told DAZN after the match.
Asked what instructions coach Niko Kovac had given him, the 18-year-old replied: “To be honest, when I was brought on, I had just come from the toilet. So there were no instructions.” His motto, he said, was: “Just go out and play. Go with the flow.”
Kovac was caught off guard: “That’s right. I was looking for him. Suddenly he wasn’t there, and I called Carney (Chukwuemeka, editor’s note), but then he came round the corner after all. If he’d still been sitting on the toilet – or whatever he was doing – he wouldn’t have come on.” Karetsas returned in time and came on after 34 minutes, playing in a free role behind Fabio Silva, who was now the lone striker.
Karetsas played well and capped his performance with the winner to make it 2-1 (72nd minute), a few minutes after the visitors had equalised following Silva's opener (67th minute). He was later named Man of the Match, though the teenager disagreed: “Fabio Silva deserved it. He had a goal and an assist.”
From a slightly deeper position, the Portuguese supplied that assist, finding Karetsas as he cut inside from the right. Karetsas controlled the ball perfectly and shot immediately from the edge of the penalty area. He caught the previously outstanding Betis goalkeeper Alvaro Valles by surprise and found the near corner. The finish had DAZN pundit Sebastian Kneißl waxing lyrical: “That is outstanding. It’s a quality he has: recognising space and knowing how the game is developing.” His “first touch” was also outstanding, Kneißl said.
Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovac praises Konstantinos Karetsas: “Like a hare”
Karetsas also earned praise from his coach. “You could see that he’s a really good footballer,” Kovac said, adding: “Not just because he scored the goal, but because he keeps changing direction, like a hare. That makes him difficult to defend against. He produced a lot of good stepovers and brought a lot of energy. He and Fabio combined really well up front.”
If Guirassy is unavailable, Kovac said it is “likely” that Karetsas will take his place in Borussia Dortmund's starting line-up.
