Marius Wolf: who is Borussia Dortmund's on-song full back in the Germany fold?
Marius Wolf has gone from strength to strength since settling down at Borussia Dortmund, and few have been surprised that the versatile full back has been rewarded for his energy and reliability with a Germany call up.
bundesliga.com takes a closer look at Borussia's willing grafter ...
Marius Wolf
Age: 27
Club: Borussia Dortmund
Position: Right wing-back
Country: Germany (one U20 cap)
Key stats
Born in the Bavarian town of Coburg, Wolf joined the youth ranks of Nuremberg as a 13-year-old, where he impressed on the pitch while advancing in his schooling.
A switch to Munich followed in 2012, with Wolf ready to continue his playing development in the Junior Bundesliga with 1860 Munich. A phenomenal 2013/14 season in which he scored nine goals and provided as many assists led to him being named youth-team captain.
Watch: Marius Wolf on target in Freiburg
It was only a matter of time before the 6’2” versatile full-back made his way into the first team at 1860 and after rubbing shoulders with the seniors in a series of friendlies, Wolf made his senior bow in Bundesliga 2, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 reverse against Eintracht Braunschweig in October 2014. Just under four months later, Wolf scored his first senior goal, a header, against St Pauli.
Despite subsequently switching to Hannover and making his Bundesliga debut in 2016, Wolf’s time at the Lower-Saxony-based club – where he suffered relegation from the top flight – was largely unproductive and he was soon on the move again, joining Eintracht Frankfurt on loan. After impressing at Die Adler, Wolf’s temporary arrangement was extended.
He scored his first ever Bundesliga goal against current club Dortmund in a 2-2 draw at Deutsche Bank Park in October 2017. Niko Kovac and Eintracht decided to activate the purchase clause in Wolf’s loan deal from Hannover, enabling him to go on and help the Eagles to achieve DFB Cup final glory against Bayern Munich in 2018.
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BVB came calling after that success, meaning Wolf was on his way to Signal Iduna Park. Although he won Super Cup honours in Black-and-Yellow, the right-sided player found it tough competing with Lukasz Piszczek and later Thomas Meunier for a place Dortmund’s side, with injury not helping matters. He was loaned out to Hertha Berlin and, later, Cologne, helping the Billy Goats to maintain their top-flight status with a relegation play-off win against Holstein Kiel.
He returned to Dortmund for the 2021/22 campaign and his combative, energetic performances saw him steadily rack up 27 Bundesliga appearances, all the while weighing in with three goals and two assists. Appearing on either flank this term, he featured in 24 games in all competitions prior to the March international break, aiding in Dortmund's exceptional run in 2023.
Plays a bit like: Cafu
Just like the legendary Brazil World Cup winner, Wolf is stamina personified while the German's ability to combine patient passing with an explosive, forward drive brings back memories of the ex-AC Milan star. Wolf is also capable of being in the right place at the right time in order to register the occasional goal.
Did you know?
Wolf recently revealed he underwent successful surgery for a heart complaint called mild atrial fibrillation last November.
What they're saying
"It would be a dream; a tremendous honour." - Wolf when asked prior to his selection of the possibility of a senior Germany call-up.
"Marius has always had top quality and has done a great job at the club in recent weeks." - Wolf's BVB teammate Emre Can.
"If Marius doesn't become a national team player, I'll stop playing football." - Kevin-Prince Boating was full of praise for Wolf during the players' time together at Eintracht.
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