A new start. At 32, Thomas Meunier has decided to leave Borussia Dortmund this winter. After an interesting start, the Belgian experienced a terrible downgrade and being sidelined about a year ago. Sent to the reserve team, with whom he played a match on October 28 against Sandhausen (2-1 defeat, 60 minutes played), the Sainte-Ode native took his troubles patiently. And when he no longer believed in it, Edin Terzic and his staff called on him following several absences from his position. Result: he played 8 matches in all competitions in Dortmund between December 2023 and January 2024.
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The BVB page is turned
And he was systematically a starter, except once. The Red Devil then said to himself that he could move forward with the Marsupials. But he quickly became disillusioned. After the end of the winter transfer window in Germany on February 1, BVB did not include him in the list to play in the Champions League during the second part of the season. A low blow that convinced Meunier that it was time to leave. Linked in January to Burnley, where his former teammate Vincent Kompany works, he was unable to join England once the transfer window ended. But he quickly found a new base.
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On February 7, Dortmund announced his departure, his contract initially ending on June 30, 2024. “Thomas Meunier settles in Türkiye. After three and a half years and 86 competitive matches in the black and yellow jersey, the Belgian right-back joined the Süper Lig and Trabzonspor. Thank you for your commitment and good luck for the future, Thomas.” Ready to open a new chapter in his career, the footballer was greeted like a rock star as soon as he set foot on Turkish soil. Very motivated, he had every intention of showing his new supporters that he still had something going on.
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Meunier takes care of his entrance
Quickly, he was put to work. From February 8, he played 75 minutes against Gençlerbirligi in the Turkish Cup. Then, he followed up with two starts in the league against Hatayspor and Pendikspor. Two matches won 2 to 0, during which Meunier played 90 minutes. Involved defensively, he also did the job offensively since he has already delivered 3 assists in just 3 appearances under his new colors. For comparison, he had delivered 3 assists during his last 40 appearances at BVB recalls The last hour. A successful debut for the Belgian, both on and off the field. This was confirmed to us by Batista Mendy, who already seems won over.
“His integration is going well. The fact that he didn’t play in Dortmund doesn’t show because he’s in good shape. He already has his statistics with 3 assists in 3 matches. He’s a good guy, he talks to everyone, he gives advice to everyone. Like us, he wants us to stay in 3rd position to qualify for Europe.” A challenge within the reach of his club, which has as many points as Besiktas (43 units). But with Thomas Meunier at this level, Trabzonspor can believe it. His return to form is also excellent news for Belgium, with whom he wants to play Euro 2024. His last cape with the Red Devils dates back to December 1, 2022 during the World Cup in Qatar. It was against Croatia (0-0). Since then, Meunier, who hopes to return to his country sooner or later, has experienced lows with the BVB before finding a smile again in Turkey.
Pub. 02/24/2024 12:48 Updated 02/24/2024 1:07 p.m.
2024-02-24 11:48:45
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