Ivory Coast national team forward Sébastien Haller is off to the Dutch top division Eredivise to rediscover his scoring touch after FC Utrecht confirmed the loan acquisition of the experienced hitman on Thursday.
The 30-year-old arrives from Borussia Dortmund after an underwhelming loan spell at Spanish La Liga club Leganés for the first half of the 2024-25 season that saw Haller struggle for playing time. Haller failed to score in nine appearances (six starts) for the newly promoted club leading to a mutual termination of the loan.
Utrecht provides a familiar hunting ground for Haller, who made his major career breakthrough at the club. Haller moved on loan to Utrecht from French club Auxerre in 2015, scoring 11 goals in 17 appearances before securing a permanent transfer to the club. He proceeded to score 30 more goals in 65 appearances to catch the eye of Eintracht Frankfurt for a transfer to the Bundesliga before spending time with West Ham United, Ajax and Dortmund.
The struggles for playing time at club level have seen Haller's role decline with the Ivory Coast national team due to injuries and loss of form. His last appearance for The Elephants came in a June match against Gabon in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying and Haller did not make a single appearance during Ivory Coast's qualification campaign for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Haller scored two goals in four matches for the 2023 AFCON hosts including the match winning goal as Ivory Coast defeated Nigeria 2-1 in the final.
Haller, born in France, recovered from testicular cancer during the 2022-23 season while with Dortmund before returning to football in January 2023. After managing 9 goals in 23 appearances with Dortmund that season, he only netted once as his role decreased the following campaign.
Comments