After their narrow 2–1 win over Azerbaijani champions FK Sabah, Borussia Dortmund’s players left the Olympic Stadium in Baku without showering.
The immediate departure on the BVB team bus was apparently on the coaching staff’s instructions: “We didn’t shower after training yesterday either—and now we’re heading straight back to the hotel. We were told not to shower here,” BVB coach Niko Kovač explained after the match.
The swift departure of two-goal scorer Serhou Guirassy and his teammates in their training gear was somewhat surprising, given that Baku’s national stadium was only completed in 2015 and hosted matches at the 2021 European Championship.
Sporting director Ole Book put the decision down to the conditions at the venue: “I think the showers at the hotel were a bit more inviting. So we’re making sure the players get there quickly.” Book stopped short of elaborating: “More inviting—you can probably use your imagination a little,” he added, noting that the facilities were “not quite so nice.”
But Dortmund’s dash to avoid the showers puzzled hosts Sabah. Joy-Lance Mickels told Sky: “I don’t know what the problem is. I don’t want to accuse BVB of anything. We showered there just last week before the Slavia Prague game. The showers are great, and there’s no issue with cold water either.”
According to Bild, BVB did not want to take any risks with the showers. Among the reasons were concerns about possible Legionella bacteria in the water system, which can develop when water is used infrequently. Since the bacteria can be inhaled, particularly through the mist produced when showering, BVB opted to shower at the team hotel as a precaution.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.