Emre Can has been named the new BVB captain. Here’s what chairman of the board Hans-Joachim Watzke and sporting director Sebastian Kehl had to say about the decision.
Hans-Joachim Watzke: “Emre Can has vast national and international experience, and he can now use all of that as captain. In this calendar year, he has made a significant contribution to the fact that our team has stabilised at a high level on the pitch. Emre is the right captain for our team! Gregor Kobel, on the other hand, is one of our most important transfers in the recent past. If he continues to develop so positively, he will have a great career ahead of him. We are rewarding his achievements by appointing him as vice-captain at a relatively young age.”
Sebastian Kehl: “First of all, on behalf of BVB, I would like to thank our long-time captain Marco Reus once again. I wore the captain’s armband myself for many years, so I can understand the responsibility Marco has shouldered and how proud he was every single day to lead this team.
We know our team and its structure very, very well, and we had a number of options to take on the role of club captain. Emre Can showed not least through his contract extension how much he identifies with BVB. Over the course of his career, he has gained a massive amount of experience, is the right age to be captain of such a big club and has the appropriate leadership qualities and level of respect in the team. We are convinced that he is the right person moving forward to act as a link between the team, the coaching staff and me as sporting director.
Gregor Kobel, on the other hand, with his very positive development on and off the pitch, absolutely deserves to be the vice-captain of the team. His appointment is also a sign that we are giving more responsibility to the younger generation.
However, one thing that is very important to me is that everyone takes responsibility for the success of the group. And we will demand that of each and every player. That responsibility does not end with the captain, the vice-captain or the team council.”