Dortmund's Morey in emotional injury comeback after almost 3 years

Mateu Morey was hailed as Borussia Dortmund's "secret hero" after the Spaniard made an emotional return to Bundesliga action from almost three years on the sidelines.

Morey suffered a severe knee injury in a German Cup match in May 2021 and did not play in an official match until coming on late in Dortmund's 3-0 win over Freiburg on Friday.

He was celebrated by the fans in the huge south stand afterwards, and the 23-year-old spent a long time on the pitch where he also took many selfies, as it was also his first home game in front of fans.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic matches were played behind closed doors at the time of his injury.

"Mateu is our secret hero. I am so proud to have such a character in my team," coach Edin Terzic said.

"Unfortunately he got injured duing the coronavirus pandemic and has been working on his comeback for almost three years. It was an extremely long road from the hospital back onto the pitch. We hope he can get a lot of energy out of it."

Striker Niclas Füllkrug said "I am so happy for him" and added that being "in front of the south stand was something special for him."

Sporting director Sebastian Kehl said: "Mateu has gone through many personal crises. It is nice to see him with a broad smile again in the dressing room."