Syrian-born 19-year-old Mahmoud Dahoud scored his first Bundesliga goal on Wednesday night in Borussia Monchengladbach's 4-2 win over Augsburg.
Dahoud, who has played for both the German Under 18 and U19 sides, fired a dipping shot from 25 metres out to beat Augsburg keeper Marwin Hitz just inside the left post. It capped a roaring start for Gladbach, who netted all four of their scores within the first 21 minutes.
It was also perhaps a poignant moment given the backdrop in Germany.
The country has been dealing with a major influx of refugees – largely Syrian – in recent months, and earlier this month reinstated border controls to manage the flow. Bundesliga clubs in turn have made refugee outreach and welcoming a priority. Included among the efforts have been a Bayern Munich training camp for refugees, began this week, as well as an intiative last weekend that saw all 36 teams in the top two flights of German football don a #refugeeswelcome logo on their shirt.
Dahoud, born in Amouda, Syria, near the Turkish border, signed for Monchengladbach in 2010 from Fortuna Dusseldorf and has earned a reguar place in the club’s first-team squad this season.
He posted to his official Facebook page on Thursday morning a picture of his goal celebration the night before and a heart emoticon. Congratulations were left in both German and Arabic, with one fan writing “Well played and Eid Mubarak!”
It was a welcome win for his team, who had began the Bundesliga season with five straight losses and were bottom of the table, a season after they finished third to qualify for the Champions League. The three points leapfrogged Gladbach over Hoffenheim and Hannover.
Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE
