On the way to face AS Monaco in the 2017 Champions League, Dortmund’s team bus was hit by a bomb, wounding two people, including a player. Merino says he barely escaped a shrapnel blast.
April 11, 2017 shocked football. What began as a celebratory trip turned into a nightmare for Borussia Dortmund. Fresh from a quarter‑final berth after ousting Benfica, the Ruhr side was heading to Signal Iduna Park to meet Kylian Mbappé’s Monaco. Yet nothing went as planned.
Approaching Signal Iduna Park, the yellow‑and‑black bus encountered an explosion just 1:45 before kickoff. Three devices hidden in roadside hedges detonated as the vehicle passed. Defender Marc Bartra suffered glass shards to his right wrist and was rushed for surgery. A police motorcyclist escort was also injured, and a third victim could have been lost.
I’m truly fortunate to still be alive. Will he ever forget that day?
Having logged only nine appearances for BVB between 2016 and 2018, Arsenal’s now‑essential midfielder Merino recalls the ordeal: “I think I had a guardian angel. I’m incredibly lucky to be alive. Most youngsters can’t fathom such a horror, but it scarred us all. A deafening roar, the bus nearly flipping, blood on the floor, smoke and screams… I later waited in hospital for Bartra, whose wrist was badly cut.” He later penned the piece for The Players’ Tribune. In my view, this near‑tragedy reshaped his career outlook.
He also describes how a lucky seat saved him from a grave wound: “The next day I learned a massive shrapnel piece lodged in the headrest beside Marc’s seat – my usual spot. That seat was empty, so I moved forward, which probably saved my life. I truly believe events happen for a reason.” Without the bus’s reinforced glass, casualties could have been far worse. The postponed match saw Leonardo Jardim’s side edge Dortmund 3‑2 on German soil.