Former coach Thorsten Fink raves about Borussia Dortmund new signing Konstantinos Karetsas

After lengthy talks with the Belgians, Borussia Dortmund signed the 18-year-old for a fee of around €30 million. At BVB, the Greece international is expected to replace Julian Brandt, whose contract was not extended.

Karetsas made an impression at the weekend in Dortmund’s 3-2 pre-season friendly win away to the English champions Arsenal, scoring the temporary 2-0 with a fine left-footed strike from distance. "It was a typical Karetsas moment: cutting inside and curling the ball into the far corner," Fink told Sport1.

Fink coached the creative player at Genk for a year and a half, so he is well placed to judge his qualities: "He is certainly a good player who has good technical attributes, is strong in one-on-one situations and can play a good final pass," said Fink, who added: "A little magician, a typical No 10."

What does Konstantinos Karetsas still need to learn and improve?

Still, Fink warned that Karetsas will need plenty of time to adapt to the Bundesliga, partly because of his age, and that there are still parts of his game he must learn: "Football-wise, he is already very good. But when it comes to: when do I play which pass, when do I take the risk on myself and when do I simply have to play it safe – he can certainly still improve there," said the coach. "First of all, he needs more experience," he added.

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Even so, Fink backed Dortmund’s move for Karetsas: "He is still a young player who does not yet know and can do everything. He has the top attributes to become a top player, in the league and also at BVB," he said confidently.

Last season, Karetsas registered three goals and 18 assists in 49 competitive appearances for Genk.

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