Mario Götze criticises Lucien Favre for lack of opportunities at Borussia Dortmund
By Tushar Bahl
Former Borussia Dortmund player Mario Götze has taken a swipe at Lucien Favre, saying that the Swiss head coach’s team selections were not solely based on performances on the training pitch.
Götze was reduced to a bit part role during his final season with Borussia Dortmund and made just 21 appearances. Most of those appearances came off the bench, as the playmaker spent only 609 minutes on the pitch. He scored three goals and provided one assist, but wasn’t able to earn a contract extension with the Black and Yellows.
In an interview with football magazine 11Freunde, Götze spoke about Favre and his reasons for not selecting him during his final season with Borussia Dortmund.
"“In the last two years at Borussia, from my point of view, there was no performance culture that was solely based on performance,” Götze said. “He (Favre) said that he didn’t think I could help the team and he didn’t have a position for me, which basically made little sense to me and were rather excuses.”“In the end, I lived in Dortmund with the feeling that I was not relevant anymore.”"
The 28 year old left Borussia Dortmund when his contract expired in the summer, before joining Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on a free transfer. He is a regular starter there, and has made a total of 23 appearances so far, scoring six goals.
While Favre was sacked by Borussia Dortmund in December 2020 following a string of poor performances and results.
Götze also spoke about his decision to return to Borussia Dortmund after leaving Bayern Munich in 2016. He revealed that he could have joined Liverpool, but felt that he had a greater chance of winning the Champions League in Dortmund.
"“You have to think of it like this: Where did I come from? From Munich, where I had reached the semi-finals in the Champions League three times with Bayern. I wanted to do that again!”“Liverpool had finished eighth in the league. At that time, the likelihood of winning the Champions League with Borussia seemed much greater to me.”"
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The 2014 World Cup winner made a total of 103 appearances during his second spell with Borussia Dortmund. He was one of the team’s best performers during the second half of the 2018/19 season. But he lost his spot in the team last season before leaving on a free transfer.