Subotic scores in 1st outing for 8 months: 'Felt like I was in Disneyland'

Neven Subotic's long-awaited return from arm and rib issues is almost over, after the Serbian turned out for Borussia Dortmund II on Wednesday and scored the 86th-minute winner.

"I felt like I was in Disneyland," Subotic said of his fourth-tier outing against Rodinghausen, with translation from ESPN FC's Stefan Buczko. "I was supposed to play only 60 minutes, but when you're in Disneyland you don't want to go home."

Subotic's previous appearance came in Borussia Dortmund's 3-1 win at FC Augsburg on March 20, but he was on the verge of joining Middlesbrough in the summer when his rib issue was revealed following a slew of injuries over the previous two terms.

For the 27-year-old to completely turn around his fortunes at the Westfalenstadion and not be jettisoned in the January transfer window, he'll have to promptly vault ahead of Sokratis, Marc Bartra, and Matthias Ginter in manager Thomas Tuchel's defensive pecking order.