One last hurray for Marco Reus: a gigantic goosebumps farewell pushes BVB towards Wembley

One last time in front of the south stand. Marco Reus says goodbye to Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion emotionally and in vintage style. Everyone is hoping for the big happy ending at Wembley.

“The decisive factor is on the pitch,” Dortmund football idol Adi Preißler once said. This Saturday it had to be rephrased into: What matters is what Marco Reus does. Because the Bundesliga game between Borussia Dortmund and SV Darmstadt was just a minor matter. It was already clear beforehand: Dortmund would remain fifth, Darmstadt would be relegated last. The outcome of the summer kick actually doesn’t matter at all.

Not that it doesn’t matter: Everyone wanted to see Marco Reus in this stadium one last time, admire him and, at best, say goodbye with a goal. They weren’t disappointed. Reus scored a goal and an assist in the 4-0 win – it couldn’t be better. Even Reus himself found it “a bit cheesy”.

And of course coach Edin Terzić sent Reus into the starting line-up as captain. As before. Reus, who is now more of a supplementary player than a difference player, got goosebumps when he said goodbye in front of the gigantic backdrop. “It was very emotional today. Doing everything again one last time was something very special. I planned to enjoy everything again. It was perfect all around,” said Reus.

“Thank you Marco” from the south stand

The ceremony began well before kick-off. Reus was allowed out to warm up half a minute before his teammates and was immediately celebrated by the over 80,000 fans. “That wasn’t planned on my part,” Reus explained later in the mixed zone and grinned. The “Marco Reus” chants started 35 minutes before the start. To the sounds of “Someone like you” by Adele, Reus was presented with flowers, a portrait and farewell words from club representatives and stadium spokesman Nobert Dickel, then the first round of farewell in front of the south stand, Reus tapped his heart and let himself be celebrated.

The fans honored him with a huge “Thank you Marco!” choreography. Behind it was the number 11 in black and yellow. Already on the way to the stadium you felt like you saw even more jerseys with the number 11 than usual, for example “black and yellow legend” could be read. “One More Time” sound on the stands.

The game is quickly summarized: Dortmund looked for Reus, after two good chances (one crossbar), he gave Ian Maatsen the lead via a tunnel. In the 38th minute, some people in the stadium suspected it when the ball was perfectly 17 meters away, ready for a free kick. The fans stood up – in the shouts of “In” he actually shot him: in. The teammates cheered their captain, who then distributed air kisses to the spectators. “It was like a picture,” said Reus about the goal.

Füllkrug hits with the confetti cannon

The moment of the day came in the 81st minute. Reus left the pitch to a standing ovation. The teammates stood in line, even the Darmstadt players stood next to them and the visiting fans applauded. You also have to work for that first. A little later, at 5:18 p.m., the final whistle sounded for the attacker’s last game in Dortmund. Reus climbed over the fence and made his way to the lead singer of the Ultras. One of them. “We win the cup”, “European Cup!” “We are all Dortmund boys” – the full program.

“I am very grateful that they gave me the chance to go there,” said Reus about the trip to the fan stands. The person being celebrated immediately returned the favor. Reus poured out thousands of liters of free beer for the BVB supporters. And after a lap of honor including a confetti cannon display from Niclas Füllkrug, the Reus celebration ended again in front of the south stand.

So there he was, half an hour after the final whistle, standing in front of the still bulging “Yellow Wall”. Everything is just more emotionally charged than usual. One last time as a Borussia Dortmund player. One last time at Tollhaus Westfalenstadion. Marco Reus in the spotlight. Something he isn’t necessarily looking for or needing. But today it was inevitable, at least. The big bow. We don’t know what was going through his mind. Perhaps some of the many incredible moments in this stadium.

His important double in the 3-2 win against FC Bayern in 2018. Or his derby goal and iconic “Robin” celebration alongside “Batman” friend Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 3-0 win against Schalke. Or his sensational solo against Besiktas, when he took out two players in a row. Maybe also the equalizer in the Westfalenstadion miracle against FC Malaga, when BVB turned the game around in injury time and made the Champions League final perfect. BVB moments for eternity.

Marco Reus was the promise of a golden time

Reus will leave the club as a BVB legend, that’s no exaggeration. He was born and grew up here, came through the youth teams and, after a long detour, spent twelve professional years in Dortmund. Just a Dortmund boy. Not the most approachable, but still a crowd favorite, idol, face of modern BVB. Maybe because his career is characterized by ups and downs. “More heights,” he emphasized in his farewell video two weeks ago.

Setbacks were part of it. In the Dortmund youth team he was weighed and found to be too light and was sorted out. A mistake that later cost the club 17.5 million euros. That’s how expensive the transfer fee for the offensive star was in 2012 to Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he made his breakthrough.

In 2012, when Reus returned to Dortmund, he was one of the league’s most exciting players, arguably the hottest stock. A phenomenon. He had already enchanted half the league in Gladbach under coach Lucien Favre. A mix of speed, technique, overview and finishing strength. The newly crowned double champion with all the Götzes and Lewandowskis now got this monster Reus. A promise of a golden time, a new era. But then something happened differently.

Reus was unlucky enough to have joined BVB at exactly the same time that Bayern’s dominance was reaching historic proportions. First under Jupp Heynckes and Pep Guardiola, then under Hansi Flick. It was only in the Nagelsmann/Tuchel phase that this began to crumble again. BVB missed their biggest chance to dethrone Bayern last year on the last matchday. After the 2-2 draw against Mainz, Reus sat crying on the home stadium lawn. The maximum heartbreak moment.

Reus’ numbers speak for themselves

His story also includes: In his twelve years at BVB, the 34-year-old has not won a major title. More Supercup trophies (three) than other precious metals combined. Of course two DFB Cup victories, but they don’t leave quite as much of an impression. But also: no championship or European title. This earned him, this damn good offensive artist, the reputation of something unfinished. Reus – an underachiever? It still sticks with him today. Despite all the skills and personal successes, there were still a few remaining doubts.

This also became clear later in Dortmund. Between 2018 and 2023, Reus wore the captain’s armband of the black and yellow and with it more responsibility on his shoulders.

During this time too, the Dortmund team bit their teeth nationally against the dominant Bayern and internationally against big players like Juve, Real, Chelsea and City. The non-titles and all the runners-up (seven in total) were then even more associated with Reus, which wasn’t always fair. The much-cited mentality debate boiled over and Reus himself lost his nerve over it. “This is getting on my nerves,” he rumbled in 2019 after a 2-2 draw against Frankfurt. “You with your mental shit”. Two years later, after the team had overcome a period of weakness, he reacted with the legendary quote: “Everyone is only human.”

Reus as a person was appreciated by the fans, as was the footballer. But it wasn’t always the greatest love. In return, Reus radically held up a mirror to the club – often stagnation at the highest level. His importance for the club is immense: In total, Reus played in 428 competitive games for BVB, scored 170 goals and provided 131 assists. Brutal values. This puts him fourth in the list of the club’s record players and second among the top goalscorers. Only Adi Preißler stands in front of him.

Reus experienced seven coaches. Klopp, Tuchel, Bosz, Stöger, Favre, Terzić, Rose and then Terzić again. They came, everyone relied on him, they left – Reus stayed. Despite many offers from all kinds of top clubs. Loyalty is also part of BVB’s number 11. The fans also appreciate that. “Identification and loyalty are what your name stands for”, “100 percent Dortmunder” and “Few words, many actions – 100% of a whole decade” were just some of the posters on the south stand for Reus’ farewell.

The circle closes at Wembley

However, his time in the national team had more downs than ups. When he was there, like in 2018, hardly anything came together. He was one of the hopefuls when he joined national coach Joachim Löw’s team in 2012, which was already blessed with talent. At the 2012 European Championships we reached the semi-finals and Reus also played in the knockout games. He then missed the 2014 World Cup victory, in which he might have become one of the big stars, because of a torn syndesmosis ligament, which he suffered in the last friendly match before the tournament against Armenia. He also missed the 2016 European Championships (pubic bone inflammation) and the 2017 Confederations Cup victory (torn cruciate ligament) due to injury. He played his last game in 2021 against Liechtenstein. Reus and the DFB team – it wasn’t meant to be.

Injuries in general, they take up a big chapter in this career. In total, Reus has missed an incredible 213 games due to injuries and illnesses since 2012/13. It remains a big “what if” question in his career.

And yes, things have come full circle at Wembley. In BVB’s first season, Reus reached the Champions League final at Wembley after the legendary semi-final against Málaga. Reus and BVB narrowly lost to Arjen Robben’s FC Bayern. A thorn that runs deep. In the very last game for BVB, Reus returns to this iconic location. The place of longing for footballers. The happy ending on the horizon. Reus can actually ride the handle pot into the sunset.

The biggest punch line of your career?

His career will continue one way or another. Reus explained that he loves football too much to stop now. It is still unclear where the journey will take us. Everything indicates that he is leaving North Rhine-Westphalia for the first time in his professional life and taking the leap across the Atlantic. The USA is tempting, ex-colleague Roman Bürki wants to guide him to St. Louis. The MLS is open to him. Just like a return to BVB. “We very much hope that he will return to BVB after his professional career, because there are enough exciting tasks waiting for him here in Dortmund,” promised managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke.

But before that there is still the biggest possible highlight. Wembley. Not the rematch against Bayern, but Real Madrid. Not much more is possible. Not much more kitsch potential either. After the semi-final coup against PSG, Reus was allowed to celebrate and sing songs in the middle of the away mob. He clearly felt comfortable. It seemed like great love at the last sight.

“Now we have to get him too – otherwise it would be shit,” said Reus after the semi-final about the showdown for the pot. The maximum success in the last BVB game? It would be the biggest punchline of his career. The completion of the “unfinished”.