In a surprising turn of events in the UEFA Champions League, Borussia Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy, a striker with a mixed career history, scored a hat-trick against Barcelona but was unable to prevent his team's elimination. Guirassy, 29, has risen to the top of the Champions League scoring charts with 13 goals, despite having relegations from the German and French top tiers on his CV and never previously producing a 15-goal season.
Two-time Champions League winner Owen Hargreaves praised Guirassy, stating, "He's been absolutely amazing in this competition, he's been a goalscoring machine." Guirassy's six transfers in a journeyman career, which have cost a combined £45m, have taken him from Laval to Borussia Dortmund. He has been linked with several British clubs throughout his career.
Guirassy made his breakthrough at Laval in the 2014-15 Ligue 2 season, scoring six goals in 29 games. He was then transferred to Lille, where he struggled under manager Herve Renard and was loaned to Auxerre. Despite scoring eight goals in 16 games, Lille sold him the following summer.
His first move to Germany was to Cologne, where injuries limited his impact. He scored just four goals in his first two seasons, and the team was relegated. Guirassy's injury problems continued at Amiens, but he still managed to score 11 goals in 32 games across two seasons.
Guirassy's form improved significantly when he returned to France to join Rennes. He scored 25 goals in two seasons for the club, attracting interest from several British teams, including Everton. However, he chose to return to the Bundesliga, joining Stuttgart on loan.
Guirassy excelled at Stuttgart, scoring 14 goals in 30 games, including one in the promotion-relegation play-off win over Hamburg. His impressive form led to Stuttgart making the signing permanent for a fee of about £7.6m.
In the 2023-24 season, Guirassy found his shooting boots, netting 30 goals in 30 games for Stuttgart. He scored 28 Bundesliga goals in as many games, finishing just behind Harry Kane in the race for the Golden Boot. Despite missing several games through injury, he played the most minutes in the league of his career.
Guirassy moved to Borussia Dortmund last summer, scoring 28 goals in 40 games, including 13 in the Champions League. His 13 Champions League goals is a record for an African player in a single campaign. "I understand that my form might surprise some, but I'm not surprised," Guirassy said recently. "It's just a question of confidence."
Source: BBC Sports Football
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