Dortmund’s Sebastien Haller Returns After Surviving Cancer

After undergoing surgery and chemotherapy to treat testicular cancer, Borussia Dortmund’s forward, Sebastien Haller, has resumed training at the club.

Sebastien Haller, 28, joined the German team in July 2022 for €31 million from Ajax, but he is yet to play for the club since then.

Only a few weeks after agreeing to a four-year contract with Dortmund, Haller was diagnosed with cancer.

The Ivory Coast international, who attended the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris in October, intends to play for Dortmund against Augsburg on January 22 in their opening league game of the year.

At Dortmund’s training camp in Marbella on Monday, Haller said: “It’s been a tough six months but I am happy to be here.

“I am happy to be here with the guys and able to play in this great weather and these facilities.

“Of course everything is possible. I have no restrictions in my mind. The only people who can give me restrictions are the coach and the medical staff. I will do my best to play on the 22nd.”

Before joining Dortmund, the former player for Eintracht Frankfurt and West Ham enjoyed success with Dutch champions Ajax, where he scored 34 goals during his time there.

Before transferring allegiance to the Ivory Coast, Sebastien Haller played for Auxerre and Utrecht while also representing France at the junior level.

As for his club, after playing 15 league games so far this season, Dortmund is sixth in the Bundesliga, nine points adrift of league-leaders Bayern Munich.