What are we to make of Felix Nmecha

Welcome to the Dortmund Dispatch.

Borussia Dortmund have a new number 8. His job is to replace its outgoing number 22, Jude Bellingham. But there’s a problem.

Feliz Nmecha is a 22-year-old Hamburg native, who for the last two seasons has been making a name for himself as an outstanding midfielder in a half-decent Wolfsburg team. Despite being born in Germany, Nmecha, along with his older brother Lukas began his football career in England at Manchester City.

Beyond a solitary appearance in the EFL Cup, Felix did not break into the first team so, again like his brother made the move to Wolfsburg where both have flourished.

With Jude Bellingham off to sunny Spain, a successor if not a replacement has been sought and Nmecha was a priority target. He’s not as good as the Englishman, few players in his position are, but in Nmecha, the club’s sporting director Sebastien Kehl and coach Edin Terzic see a young player they can develop, and hopefully keep.

Few doubt the player’s ability or the club’s ability to improve him (although surely Ellyes Skhiri who was available for free from FC Koln would have been worth a look) there are huge doubts about the player’s character in light of some historic social media posts retweeting homophobic and transphobic views. As reported in DW Sports:

Once news of the transfer emerged a number of Borussia fans on Social Media began to raise their objections. Borussia Dortmund has a specific code of conduct that prevent players and staff from expressing or supporting discriminatory views.

Ballspiel Vereint is an overarching fan group that can count 49 fan groups as affiliates that campaign against hatred, prejudice, and discrimination. It staged a protest outside the Westfalenstadion calling upon the club to “stand by its values”. The popular German sports magazine, Kicker held an online poll in which 70,000 people responded, of which 58% were against the transfer.

But the transfer did happen for €30 million and Felix is now a Dortmund player. The club is assuring fans that their controversial new signing is, in the words of CEO Hans Joachim Watzke, “A completely normal boy”. Club President Reinhold Nubow also insisted after meeting with the player that “he has my trust” and is “not homophobic”.

The player himself was at pains to point out that it does not discriminate against anyone and that “some things were taken out of context”. A familiar refrain of any public figure who has expressed objectionable views and is looking for an out. “Of course, I am a Christian.” he said in his official video after signing for Borussia “but I love everyone. I don’t discriminate.”

What was missing from his remarks, as journalist Felix Tamsut points out, is that there was no apology for what he did. Nmecha had the perfect opportunity to recuse himself from his remarks. The club literally gave him a platform to do it.

Nmecha’s remarks imply a link between Christian values and specific views on sexuality and gender. As if it’s OK to take a position on these issues on the basis of your religious beliefs. I’ve always held the view that anyone using their faith to justify prejudice and bigotry undermines that faith and speaks ill of their character. There are plenty of Christians who are not homophobes or transphobes and do not see a contradiction in their religion.

Had this all happened back when Nmecha was a spotty teenager then it might be possible to look past this, assuming he apologised. Kids make mistakes and people learn and grow. But all this was done earlier this year and again, without showing any contrition. I don’t see how you can walk back from that. He may have convinced Nubow and Watzke that he’s a decent guy and not a homophobe but are those two individuals best placed to judge?

In any event, Felix Nmecha is now a Borussia Dortmund player, and once the season starts will have the chance to prove his value on the pitch. No doubt he’ll be cautious about his social media activity and if he plays well and works hard for the team it will be that much easier for fans to move on from this. It is likely that a good number of fans will not be that fussed about the issue, in the first place.

But the transfer leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Here was an opportunity for Borussia Dortmund to take a stand: acknowledging that they would be missing out on a potentially valuable squad asset for the sake of its principles and values. This is hugely disappointing: it calls into question their commitment to the fight against hate and prejudice and undermines the hard work of fan groups who are embroiled in that fight.