Bundesliga
Leverkusen sign Hoffenheim's Kerem Demirbay
Bayer Leverkusen have announced the signing of Hoffenheim midfielder Kerem Demirbay on a five-year deal. The 25-year-old German international becomes the club’s first summer signing.
The Hoffenheim No.10 has swapped the PreZero Arena for the BayArena signing a contract until 2024 with Leverkusen.
“This is the next chapter after three great years at Hoffenheim,” said Demirbay. “Leverkusen play really attractive attacking football. Their style suits mine and I’m really looking forward to becoming a part of this team.”
Watch: Demirbay tears Hannover apart!
The two-time Germany international came through the youth ranks of Schalke and Borussia Dortmund before joining Hamburg in 2013, where he went on to make his Bundesliga debut.
A successful loan spell with Fortuna Düsseldorf caught the attention of Hoffenheim, and his three seasons in Sinsheim helped earn him his first caps for Germany, as well as first appearances in the Champions League.
“This is a clear sign of our ambition,” said Bayer sporting director Rudi Völler. “We have a lot planned for the coming season but first we want to qualify for Europe. If we do that. We’ll need quality players like Kerem Demirbay.”
Demirbay has scored four goals and added eight assists for Hoffenheim in the 2018/19 season.