Who Is Tom Rothe?

Coming into the hugely important game with Wolfsburg, Dortmund had been suffering from a number of key injuries in their battle for top spot in the Bundesliga.

This inspired Dortmund coach Marco Rose to take a gamble on a hugely promising talent at Left Back.

Join us as we take a look at, who is Tom Rothe?.

Key Details

Name: Tom Rothe

Age: 17
Club: Borussia Dortmund
Position: Left full-back / wing back
Country: Germany (Under-19, 3 caps)

With Dortmund suffering from lengthy injury list, coach Marco Rose put his faith in the 17-year-old Rothe in a crucial home game against Wolfsburg.

Rothe arrived at Dortmund following a move from St. Pauli in July of 2021, the 6’2″ full-back was enjoying a solid campaign with the club’s U19s before taking his place with the seniors for a Bundesliga debut to remember.

His impressive form so far this season catching the eye of the hierarchy of Dortmund, Rothe has scored three goals and weighed in with ten assists in 27 appearances across all competitions to date, and he took his opportunity with both hands.

Just 24 minutes into Dortmund’s home encounter against Wolfsburg, Rothe met a Julian Brandt corner kick with a terrific glancing header that flew in for the team’s opening goal of what would end up in a convincing emphatic 6-1 victory. The goal made the 17 years old the youngest goalscoring debutant in the Bundesliga at just 17 years and 169 days.

The goal also made the exciting teen only the third 17-year-old to score on his Bundesliga debut, with Peter Knäbel of Bochum and Dortmund’s Ralf Augustin also managing the incredible feat. Not only that, but he became the fourth youngest scorer in Bundesliga history, with only Youssoufa Moukoko, Florian Wirtz and Nuri Sahin younger than Rothe at the time they netted.

Player Comparison

Andres Brehme

Rothe certainly has a height advantage on the German legend, although the young full-back is already showing plenty of the attributes that helped the former Kaiserslautern and Bayern Munich legend to reach the pinnacle of the world game.

Brehme’s was known for his versatility, in-game intelligence and stamina, along with an ability to get into attacking positions and score important goals, traits that Rothe has also displayed in his young career thus far.

Things To Know

Rothe is the youngest defensive player to feature for Dortmund in the Bundesliga. A Germany Under-19 international with three caps to his name to date, Rothe became Dortmund’s 17th different goalscorer in 2021/22 with his debut goal against Wolfsburg.

What Dortmund Think

“That’s how young players are born. He’s played his way into the limelight. It was a very, very good game from him. It’s normal to be nervous. We all started out as youngsters, so we were all delighted that he scored and that we ultimately won the game.” – BVB captain, Marco Reus.

“He’s been in our sights for quite a while. Due to our injury situation, it was time to give the kid his chance today. He settled into the game straight away and wasn’t overawed. His confidence grew with the goal. He played a very solid game today.” – Dortmund coach Marco Rose.

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Feature Image credit Embed from Getty Images