Captain Lars Stindl has informed Borussia that he will not be extending his contract and will leave the club after eight years in the summer.
“I have done a lot of thinking over the past few weeks and came to the conclusion that I am going to go back home. This was always part of the plan, but this great club with all of its staff, the people here and my teammates, the incredible positivity from you guys towards me and the fact that we feel right at home here meant that it was an incredibly difficult decision. Nevertheless, I feel like the time has come for me to go down a new path,” said the Borussia captain.
Borussia sporting director Roland Virkus added: “During our conversations with Lars we quickly realised that this wasn’t simply a sporting decision. It was an easy decision for us to give him as much time as he needed. Lars has now made his decision and we totally respect it, even if regret it. The sadness will hit me at some point, but for now we are just focusing on the final few weeks together.”
80 goals in 264 competitive games for Borussia
Stindl moved to Borussia from Hannover 96 in summer 2015 and has since played 264 competitive games for the club, scoring 80 goals and assisting a further 61. He became club captain ahead of the 2016/17 season and has been a regular in the side over the past few years. All Foals will forever remember his legendary hat-trick away to Fiorentina in the Europa League round of 32 second leg on 23rd February 2017 (4-2 win).
“My time at Borussia has been the best period of my life and I will never forget this club. I’m incredibly thankful to all the people I’ve met here at the club and near where I live, as well as all the Borussia fans. I will try to give everything over the next few weeks to make sure I give a good last impression,” commented Stindl.
