Borussia Dortmund's Champions League Win Amidst Injury Concerns

Borussia Dortmund’s Champions League win over Villarreal came with a jolt of anxiety, as highly rated teenager Konstantinos Karetsas left the pitch on a stretcher after a worrying first-half incident.

The 18-year-old had just released a pass when he immediately raised his arm toward the bench and dropped to the turf, prompting urgent calls for medical attention. Dortmund’s staff rushed on and treated him for several minutes, concentrating on his upper body before signalling for the stretcher.

He was carried off and taken straight down the tunnel, replaced by Ethan Nwaneri in the 27th minute.

Dortmund later moved to clarify the situation, announcing that the substitution was “due to circulation problems” and confirming Karetsas had been transported to hospital for further examinations. The club added that he “is doing as well as can be expected given the circumstances,” a line that underlined both the concern and a measure of relief.

The episode came after a slightly disrupted build-up for the youngster. Karetsas had not taken part in full training with the main group on the eve of the match, instead working in the gym. Manager Niko Kovač had played that down in his pre-match press conference, describing it as a normal variation in workload, with one or two players occasionally doing individual sessions rather than joining the full team workout.

Karetsas only arrived at Dortmund in the summer from Genk, part of a double move that also brought in his compatriot Giannis Konstantelias. That piece of business has already been hit by misfortune: Konstantelias suffered an ACL tear in late August, forcing Dortmund back into the market. They responded by securing Nwaneri on loan from Arsenal to help cover the loss — and it was the teenager from London who was thrown into action early after Karetsas’ collapse.

On the night, the drama around the youngster’s condition ran parallel to a wild contest on the pitch. Villarreal pushed Dortmund hard, but Serhou Guirassy’s second-half brace turned the tie, his double driving the Bundesliga side to a 3-2 victory over the La Liga club.

The points were banked. The worry now is whether one of Dortmund’s most intriguing summer signings will be fit to enjoy the campaign he came to Germany to launch.