There is this saying that goes thus, that behind every successful man there’s always a woman, this analogy also applies to football stars too, that behind every successful footballer there is always a club or a manager who stood by the player during his torrid time when everyone has thought that nothing good could come out from him.
The same can be said of this German, Marco Reus, who was released by his boyhood club Borussia Dortmund because he was too thin and weak, so today we will point out how he defies rejections and walk his way down to stardom through a small club.
Reus was born in 1989 in Dortmund, Germany, he joined his boyhood club Dortmund at the age of six, and grew up idolizing some of the biggest stars in the team, but most importantly he grew up idolizing Czech Republic international Tomas Rosicky, his adoration was so much for Rosicky that he went as far to wear a headband to mimic his idol when playing for the youth team.
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While growing up to the level he could break into the senior team, Reus was considered too thin and weak to make it as a professional footballer, thereafter he was released shortly after turning 17 years old which was a big mistake made by the team which later cost them around €17m to rectify the mistake.
When he was released by Borussia Dortmund, Reus was determined to still make it as a professional footballer, so in other words, he moved down north-east to a club very much younger than himself Rot Weiss Ahlen, a club founded in 1996, the birth of the club came about through the merger of TuS Ahlen and Blau-Weib Ahlen and in 1999-2000 the club won a Regionalliga playoff having finished sixth on the log which was their highest ever in their debut campaign.
In 2006, Reus made his debut in a 3-2 win against Erkenschwick, on the flip side you will agree with me that the association of a club as small as Ahlen and a great talent like Reus is odd, but the reality of things is the fact that he needs to proved his doubters wrong as he continues his development with the Ahlen team, Reus made things swift by impressing in the A-Junioren Bundesliga West and went on to scored a brace against Rot-WeiB Essen, also scoring eight more goals for Ahlen as they finished 9th in the 14 team division.
Reus stint with the Ahlen team wasn’t about himself only, he was always in the company of his former Dortmund teammates Grobkreutz a player that was also released by Dortmund just at the same age he was released due to the same excuses, their company was utilized by the club and it catapults them success in the League. Reus was deployed as a striker using his pace and direct running to outsmart defenders, and during that period Reus recorded more goals for Ahlen and they went on to win the Regionalliga Nord title.
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His great performance for Ahlen impressed the manager in the first team set up, and when Ahlen got promoted to the Bundesliga 2, he continued with his impressive performance despite coming on from the bench or as a starter, as their quest in staying in the league get more interesting Reus goals helped Ahlen ride high in the fourth position until the middle of October before the team lost form which brought about the sacking of the team coach.
After the departure of Wuck, Ahlen coach, Reus starting position was assured by the interim manager Bernd Heemsoth who had faith in the German, and as such his decision and faith in him gave birth to results, as Reus gave the boss his first win as a coach in charge of the team against Wehen Wiesbaden. However, that roller coaster starting shirt ended when the permanent manager appointed omitted him in the starting line up for three consecutive games.
However, that didn’t affect his courage, he kept scoring and contributing anytime he gets the chance to play, and by the end of May, Reus’s stay at Ahlen came to an end when Borussia Monchengladbach secured his signature with a reported fee of €1m, unfortunately for Ahlen after he left the club they got relegated to the Liga 3 having finished bottom of the log.
His moved to Gladbach coincided with his debut for the German U21 against Turkey, two days after his debut for Gladbach where he came on as a substitute for Karim Matmour in a 3-3 draw against Bochum, he went on to play three productive years at Gladbach. In 2012 his much-awaited move to Signal Iduna Park came calling, as he moved to his boyhood club Borussia Dortmund for a reported fee of €17.1m on a five-year deal, a team he regarded as one that could challenge for trophies.
Since he moved to the Westfalenstadion aside his injury issues he won the Bundesliga, player of the season on three occasions, scoring over a 100 goals for the BVB, and he was also appointed the captain of the team, for all of his success with Dortmund it won’t be out of place to say Rot Weiss Ahlen played a big role in his rise to stardom, as what he achieved with Ahlen when they won the Regionalliga in 2007-08 season now seems like a mere stepping stone to his success since he left.
Although his international career may not be as interesting as he would want, with injuries always playing a part in getting him out anytime a major tournament is coming up which he could be involved in, and the niggling injuries happened to him twice or thrice in his career, first was when he was named in Germany’s team for the World Cup 2014, which ultimately forced him to withdraw after suffering an ankle injury in the team warm-up game against Armenia.
Reus also got injured again during their qualification for UEFA Euro 2016, having already made four appearances and scoring once for the German. Unfortunately, he wasn’t selected for the tournament after picking up a groin injury. The world might say Reus is synonymous with injuries, but then he’s one player who has paid his dues having risen up from a tiny Rot Weiss Ahlen club founded in 1996, which he is older or perhaps bigger than and aside injury Marco Reus can lay claim to the starting shirt of any team in Europe on his day.
