Half a year before the end of the contract
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As expected, Lennard Maloney is leaving 1.FC Heidenheim six months before the end of his contract and will bring in a transfer fee for the Bundesliga club. This will be paid for by 1. FSV Mainz 05, who officially presented the central midfielder as a new signing on Tuesday evening. He receives a contract with Rheinhessen until 2028.
Maloney reportedly costs around 500,000 euros, plus performance-related bonuses. For Mainz it is the third winter in a row in which money has been spent on a new signing. Ludovic Ajorque (€6 million) and Andreas Hanche-Olsen (€2.5 million) came in 2023, and last year it was Nadiem Amiri (€1 million).
“Lennard Maloney has been able to show over the last year and a half that he has arrived in the Bundesliga. In terms of sport, he is at home on the six and his player profile fits Mainz 05 perfectly. He is an absolute mentality player with a high willingness to run and strong headers and duels. “In addition, with his warm, open nature, Lennard will fit perfectly into our dressing room,” said Niko Bungert, Mainz sports director, explaining the transfer.
Maloney is leaving Heidenheim after two and a half years and 85 games, in which he increased his market value from 350 thousand to 5 million euros. He now said about his move: “Mainz 05 suits me perfectly, both in terms of the style of play and the overall style. Sometimes you quickly notice during the first conversations with the sports management and the coach that you will get along well. That was definitely the case here, I had a good feeling from minute one.”