Kovač hails Veerman's "presence and control" as key to Dortmund's success

Despite only arriving at Borussia Dortmund shortly before the Bundesliga began, Joey Veerman has already been praised by Niko Kovač.

"He needed a little time to adjust; the rhythm is much more intense than in the Netherlands, including the defending," Kovač said in Friday's press conference.

Now, having demonstrated his skills, Kovač feels the 27-year-old “is among the very best in the Bundesliga in terms of his ball control." 

“What I particularly like about him is his simplicity. Simplicity is where the difficulty lies, but also where the beauty,” he added.

Veerman has become a real game-changer for BVB. Kovač sees "a huge benefit from his presence and control" for his team.

“You can see that in our control of the game, which we perhaps didn't have as much last season. These are areas where we are making progress.”