Niko Kovac praises Karim Adeyemi and expects him to have great success with Barcelona

Croatian Niko Kovac, coach of Borussia Dortmund, praised his former player Karim Adeyemi, stressing that the German winger's move to Barcelona will be beneficial to both parties, and he is expected to have a successful career with the Catalan team.

Kovac said, in statements to the Spanish newspaper “Marca”, on Friday, before facing Bayern Munich in the German Super Cup (Franz Beckenbauer Cup), on Saturday: “First and foremost, he is a wonderful and very honest person, and my relationship with him was very good. "He was always open with me."

He added: “He is the player with whom I had the most conversations of all the players I have coached in my career. “There were a lot of discussions to explain many things to him.”

Kovac trained Adeyemi in Dortmund until the player left for Barcelona during the current summer transfer period, without the striker succeeding in winning any title with the German team.

Kovac explained that Adeyemi’s departure was the best option for both parties, explaining: “He was a very important player for us, but he only had one year left on his contract, and I think it was difficult to keep him.”

He pointed out: “Football is played differently in Spain, and more so in Barcelona. Knowing him, I am sure he will compete there and show his quality, speed and attacking intensity. Hansi Flick knows him well from the German national team, and I expect a wonderful career for him.”

Kovac also expressed his belief that Dortmund will face Adeyemi and Barcelona in the Champions League next season, adding: “I am sure that we will face them in the Champions League this season.”

The Croatian coach touched on facing Bayern Munich in the German Super Cup, considering the Bavarian team the most prominent candidate to win, and said: “Bayern is always the favourite, but for us this match represents a great challenge.”

Kovac praised Belgian Vincent Kompany, Bayern's coach, saying: “He was a player with great experience, and now he is transferring this experience to his players. He's also a real winner, which is always important. In addition, he spent many years with the coach who I consider to be the best in the world, Pep Guardiola, and that is always a good thing.”