Borussia Dortmund turned down Germany’s request for a player to be named in Olympic squad

Borussia Dortmund were one of the clubs who turned down the DFB’s last minute request for a player to be named in Germany’s squad for the upcoming Olympic Games.

The Germany players who are in the squad for the Olympic Games jetted off to Tokyo on Tuesday. Head coach Stefan Kuntz was only able to name an 18-man squad despite having the option to call up a maximum of 22 players. The reason being that he was turned down by several Bundesliga clubs and players.

Kuntz told Kicker on Tuesday that of the hundred players he called, only 18 were given permission to join the final squad. The Germany U-21s head coach criticised clubs for their lack of support.

According to Ruhr Nachrichten, Borussia Dortmund were one of the clubs who turned down the DFB’s request for a player. The Black and Yellows weren’t ready to make any more compromises, with a number of players already set to miss a large part of pre-season training due to their involvement at the Euros.

Bayern Munich also prevented third choice goalkeeper Ron-Thorben Hoffmann from joining the squad. While a number of players pulled out after moving to new clubs, forcing late changes to the Germany squad.

Germany still have a strong squad for the Olympic Games, with the likes of Max Kruse, Maximilian Arnold and Nadiem Amiri leading the team. And Kuntz will be hoping that they can take inspiration from the Germany U-21s, who won the European Championship last month.

Borussia Dortmund will have one representative at the upcoming Olympic Games. Reinier Jesus is part of the Brazil’s 22-man squad. The football tournament at the Olympics is due to get underway on July 22, with the final set to be played on August 07.