Mario Gotze has told German newspaper SportBild that he will leave Borussia Dortmund this summer at the end of his contract as he seeks a fresh challenge, "preferably in the Barclays Premier League", he has been tipped to join either Everton or West Ham United. Dortmund’s striker has only managed to play nineteen games this season, scoring three goals in the process. His fall from grace has been as spectacular as his rise, after all he scored the winner in the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina and was destined for great things with Dortmund.
German international Gotze has played 63 times for his country, but his career has been plagued with injury, suffering upper leg and pelvis injuries on a regular basis. In 2017, he was diagnosed with a metabolism disorder, rumoured to be the cause of the injuries,
Gotze struggled during his time at Bayern Munich and following his return to Dortmund, he has been on the periphery.
Gotze told Bild that he will now leave Dortmund, and has changed agents. “After intensive considerations, I decided to make a change in the sporting planning of my career. I deliberately took the necessary time for this step because it is an important step for me to set the course for the future, I am very much looking forward to working with Reza Fazeli and his agency International Soccer Management, whose professional competence has convinced me.”
The postponement of Euro 2020 has given Gotze more time to try and regain his fitness, but as with other injury prone players, signing him would be like buying a ticket from the Michigan Lottery offer and expecting to win the top prize, it might happen, but it is highly unlikely! Similarly players like Andy Carroll and Jack Wilshere, well known to the Hammers medical team, always tried their best to get fit but failed miserably, so it would take an extraordinary act of faith to sign yet another player with great potential yet with a very poor injury record.
Gotze is still only 27 years old but seems to have been around for ever, he will probably be seen as one of the best free agents available in European football, so why have his current club allowed his contract to run down? We often use motoring analogies at the Org, and Gotze is like one of those beautiful motors you see on a forecourt or on line that is just screaming out to be purchased, your heart says buy, but your head says 'look at the maintenance bills' that this car has incurred, they are only going to get bigger!
Such is the case with Gotze, undoubtedly a good player, but one to avoid, especially as West Ham still need to 'unload' Jack Wilshere, the club hopefully learning from their combined Wilshere and Carroll 'false economies'. Gotze, thanks but no thanks, Everton have got plenty of cash, let them burn their money up on a player's potential, rather than their reality. - Ed
