Bundesliga
Bayern Munich sign Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting
Bayern Munich have signed Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting on a free transfer, with the former Paris Saint-Germain striker penning a one-year deal until the summer of 2021.
Choupo-Moting, 31, spent the last two years in Paris, serving predominantly as back-up to the likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani, but he did score the goal that took Thomas Tuchel's men through to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
The Hamburg-born Cameroon international made his last appearance for the Ligue 1 outfit as a substitute in their Champions League final defeat to Bayern on 23 August, and is seen as the ideal understudy to Robert Lewandowski.
“He gives us the squad depth we need in the centre of our attack,” said Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic. “Eric has gained international experience in Paris, knows the Bundesliga and joins us on a free. So, it all works out well.”
Choupo-Moting is well versed in the Bundesliga, having made his top-flight debut for hometown club Hamburg in a 1-0 win over Hannover on 11 August 2007. He scored five goals in 37 competitive appearances for the Red Shorts, before spending the 2009/10 campaign on loan at Nuremberg, serving up another five goals. Twenty strikes across three seasons with Mainz followed; he then registered 18 goals and 14 assists in 82 league outings for Schalke between 2014 and 2017.
After a one-season stint in the English Premier League with Stoke City, Choupo-Moting was reunited with former Mainz coach Tuchel at PSG. A bit-part player, he nevertheless tallied nine goals and three assists in 51 appearances, winning back-to-back Ligue 1 titles, both 2019/20 domestic cups and the Super Cup. The former Germany youth player has also won 49 caps for Cameroon, scoring 13 goals and captaining his father's homeland since 2018.
“It’s a great feeling to be back in the Bundesliga, and to do so at the biggest club in Germany,” Choupo-Moting added. “Who wouldn’t want to play for Bayern? It’s an honour to play for this club. The demand at Bayern is to win everything, and I’m hugely motivated to achieve that goal.”
Choupo-Moting could make his debut for the record champions when they begin the defence of their DFB Cup title in their rescheduled first-round tie on 15 October.