The Bundesliga offers an award each month to one young player who has impressed more than any other in a given month. To be qualified for such an accolade, a player must be under the age of 23 as of the first match day of the Bundesliga season, AND have never started a match in a previous Bundesliga season. For the month of April, Borussia Dortmund’s Daniel Svensson won that award.
Svensson’s Impact for Dortmund
The Swede’s April began with giving Dortmund 80’ in a strong 4-1 win against Freiburg. He started again in Münich, giving the team a full 90 in a match where Borussia Dortmund battled to a 2-2 draw with the Bavarians. Svensson then played another full match against Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he netted his first goal in Black and Yellow, a cheeky header lobbed over Jonas Omlin. It proved the decisive goal, a 3-2 win. Perhaps Svensson’s best game of April came at the end, in another 3-2 win, this time against Hoffenheim. In that match, Svensson recorded a pair of assists, finding Serhou Guirassy and Julian Brandt, respectively.
Svensson arrived on loan in January from FC Nordsjælland, but made an immediate impact, impressing new coach Niko Kovač after his first appearance in February. Back then, Kovač had this to say:
"I also want to highlight young Daniel, who played his first game today. And what a great game it was! He had no prior minutes in his legs, was still in preparation mode after a long winter break, and to deliver a performance like that must be acknowledged: Fantastic! This shows that our scouting department did an excellent job and that we have discovered another real talent."Niko Kovač
Now that we’ve seen half a season with Daniel Svensson, it’s safe to say the loan has been successful. Svensson has adapted to Borussia Dortmund so well that the player is on the verge of signing a permanent contract. I think this deal is a bargain, and I expect we’ll see much more of him next season.