Arriving on a one-season loan from Inter Milan, Valentino Lazaro made 28 competitive appearances for the Foals in all competitions in the 2020/21 campaign. One goal in particular has earned the 25-year-old a place in Borussia’s history books forever.
Valentino Lazaro (photo: imago images/Perenyi) will always be remembered by Foals fans for one moment in the 2020/21 season. In his second match for Borussia on Matchday 7 of the Bundesliga season, the Austrian scored an unforgettable goal in the fourth minute of injury time against Bayer 04 Leverkusen. After Patrick Herrmann’s cross from the right, Matthias Ginter left the ball for Lazaro who made a good run into the box and backheeled a looping effort over Lukáš Hrádecký into the far corner.
“I just tried to hit the ball with my heel. It was a something very special that I got such a perfect connection and it flew into the far corner,” said Lazaro. Foals fans voted the technically-demanding ‘scorpion kick’ as Borussia's Goal of the Year 2020 in January with an overwhelming majority of 73% of the vote. Not long afterwards, viewers of ARD-Sportschau handed the Austrian another honour as more than 115,000 people (around 35%) voted for Lazaro’s effort as it won the official Goal of the Year 2020.
Back stronger after injury
Lazaro was the final new arrival to join Borussia last summer. The 25-year-old came to Mönchengladbach on a season-long loan from Italian side Inter Milan, however he suffered a serious muscle injury almost immediately and was sidelined for several weeks. The incredible goal against Leverkusen signalled the Austrian’s comeback and Lazaro subsequently started a number of matches after that.
At the beginning of the year, groin problems put him out of action again for a period, but Lazaro was able to make a total of 28 competitive appearances for the Foals, scoring twice. “It’s a shame that Tino’s time at Borussia never really took off due to injuries. Nevertheless, last summer we welcomed a player who is very flexible and who has helped us this season,” said sporting director Max Eberl of the Austrian international, who will represent his country at this summer’s European Championship. Lazaro will return to Milan following the EUROs, where his contract runs until mid-2024.
The Foals would like to wish ‘Tino’ all the best for his future!
