Borussia Dortmund's new season has been defined by a cruel twist of fortune. The club beat Hamburg 2-0 at Signal Iduna Park on matchday one, with new Greek signings Giannis Konstantelias and Konstantinos Karetsas delivering exactly the creative spark Niko Kovac had promised. Konstantelias scored on his Bundesliga debut and looked set to become a fan favourite. Then, early in the second half, he twisted his knee in a routine challenge and did not return. By Sunday, the club confirmed the worst: a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, ruling him out for several months, likely until spring 2027.

The blow lands hard. Konstantelias, signed for 26 million euros from PAOK Saloniki, was signed to replace the dynamism lost when Karim Adeyemi left for Barcelona. His exit mid-game exposed the squad's depth in the creative positions immediately, with Marcel Sabitzer offering a far more conservative replacement. Teenager Samuele Inacio, another option off the bench, made things worse by picking up a red card within minutes of entering the pitch, adding a suspension to the club's problems.

With the transfer window closing on Tuesday evening, sporting director Ole Book and chief executive Lars Ricken are weighing their options. Bild reports that Newcastle United forward Nick Woltemade, a former Book signing at Elversberg, has emerged as a loan target. Jadon Sancho, still without a club after leaving Manchester United, is also being discussed as a free agent option. Neither move is straightforward. Meanwhile, defender Nico Schlotterbeck remains sidelined with an ankle ligament injury sustained at the World Cup in June, leaving Dortmund to navigate a congested early schedule, including a DFB-Pokal trip to HEBC Hamburg on Monday, with a squad already stretched thin.