Return after 469 days

On May 1, 2021, around ten o’clock in the evening, the world of Borussia Dortmund comes to a standstill for a brief moment. The DFB Cup semi-finals against second division team Holstein Kiel have long since been decided 5-0. Then, in what was effectively an innocuous duel, right-back Mateu Morey Bauzà, who had been substituted just twelve minutes earlier, made a wrong move, hypertensing his right knee – and almost all the ligaments were torn . The young Spaniard’s cries of pain echoed in the empty Signal Iduna Park. As a result, Morey had to undergo two surgeries. The 22-year-old’s suffering lasted 469 days before he could make his comeback in a competitive match for BVB’s second team last weekend. The magazine « 11Freunde » accompanied Morey and in the new issue gives an insight into the rehabilitation process of the 2017 European U17 champion.

“If it takes a year and a half or two, too bad. But I’ll be back, » Morey said at the start of his ordeal. He watched the video of the injury over and over again over time – only to be able to say later: « Today I’m a hundred times better than I was. ‘era.’ The Palma de Mallorca defender had to have surgery twice, once on the cruciate ligament replaced by a tendon in his left leg, once to remove the scar tissue that had formed. At one point, there was even a threat of a third, but thanks to the work of physiotherapist Peter Kuhnt, the necessary progress in terms of knee flexibility was made in time.

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He first spent a few months with his family in Mallorca during his rehab. It was « not a vacation, but I always had distractions there, » Morey described at the time. Eventually, however, BVB asked him to return to Dortmund: « You want to have more control over what happens. (…) Now I want to lead a professional life again and feel everything that goes with it. Along with rehabilitation coach Dennis Morschel, Morey is developing a stage plan to structure the time until an eventual return.

During an examination at the University of Dortmund in January 2022, doctors even found out why the move Morey made in the duel was even possible. “The severe injury is the result of a movement based on misinformation. The information comes from the knee to the brain and the movement is planned accordingly,” describes Christoph Biermann, author of “11Freunde”. According to Morschel, however, this does not didn’t work at the time: « He received too little information or too bad information. The muscle on the outside works harder than the one on the inside. On the one hand, this leads to the risk of tearing of the muscle fibers and, on the other hand, the strength potential is not fully exploited.

With this knowledge, a training plan can be devised to make Morey’s right leg much more stable through targeted exercises. Rehab coach Morschel calls it a « quantum leap. » The following months will be a time of flashbacks for the Spaniard: on the training ground, on May 10 during joint exercises with the team, in preparation for the friendly group and on August 13, more than 15 months later. the injury, at the start. eleven in the 3rd division. In the 1-0 win over Rot-Weiss Essen in front of a BVB II record crowd of 11,079 fans, Morey was replaced by Lion Semic after 45 minutes. The Spaniard is playing a good game, attracting attention with attacking actions and not afraid of duels after the long enforced break. In May, he wrote on Instagram that he had seen the « light at the end of the tunnel ».

BVB fans and team manager Preuss hope for Morey’s return to Bundesliga

TM user « Doc_Gonzo » says on the BVB forum: « Morey played very attentively and with commitment. Just like you were used to him. Naturally, however, he is still far from his old level. He was very gifted to anticipate several times, was on the ball in front of his opponent and then could only pick the ball up blindly. Usually in such situations he launches a counter attack with a good first touch or pass. He should be featured again with league 3 appearances. » Community member ‘Offensiv84’ says, « One of the best stories of this season already. He should take his time. He could be an option in the pro team sooner than expected. Now we have to cross our fingers so that he stays healthy and manages many U23 games. »

Dortmund U23 manager Ingo Preuss made a similar statement (as quoted via ‘Halterner Zeitung’): « Many no longer expected him to play again. Mateu didn’t let anything burn defensively. He hasn’t had that trait yet that he will have in the Bundesliga when he’s fit again.He’s a great guy and he knows how valuable match training is to getting closer to the pros again. I don’t know exactly yet, but it might not be his last U23 game. »

In mid-July, Morey, who says he has always remained optimistic, told the club’s own broadcaster ‘BVB-TV’: « I try to enjoy every moment with the team on the pitch. It makes me very happy « For me it’s a gift. I’m fine, my knee too. I have a good feeling. (…) In my head, I’m one hundred percent stronger, I’ve learned a lot. In a few months « , I will be stronger on the pitch. Now I need a little more time to regain the sensations, after a year it is difficult. » Perhaps he will soon be able to experience what the pandemic and the long injury denied him: a mission in front of a sold-out « yellow wall » in the Bundesliga.

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