Timo Werner played a total of 13 minutes for RB Leipzig this season. The ex-national striker and RB record goalscorer has been on the sidelines for months and has now found a new club in the USA.
Ex-national player Timo Werner is finally turning his back on RB Leipzig. According to dpa information, the Bundesliga club’s 29-year-old record scorer will move to the USA and play for the San José Earthquakes in Major League Soccer in the future. An official confirmation is still pending, but only formalities remain to be clarified. The attacker’s contract, who no longer played a sporting role at RB, would have expired in the summer.
“Basically, things are on the home stretch,” said RB coach Ole Werner. Werner will not be in the squad for the game against FSV Mainz 05 on Saturday (3:30 p.m. live and in the ticker), the coach confirmed. However, for family reasons, Werner could still train in Leipzig in February. This is currently being clarified. “He will receive all our support so that he is well prepared for his new task,” said the 37-year-old.
Only benchwarmers at RB
There was already contact between the Werner side and the club from California in December. Preparation for the MLS season begins in these weeks for most teams. The first game is on February 22nd against Kansas City. The MLS should be a new start for Werner. In Leipzig he played no role under his namesake Ole Werner this season and was only on the field for 13 minutes. The former star player sometimes didn’t even make it into the squad.
September 2016: Timo Werner (right) celebrates his first goals for RB Leipzig away at Hamburger SV. Over 100 were to follow.
There was already speculation last summer about a departure – at that time to sister club New York Red Bulls. But the transfer failed. At San José, Werner should now become one of the team’s top earners. A place is planned for the Swabian as a so-called designated player, which means the salary is freely negotiable. According to media reports, Werner received a salary of around ten million euros a year in Leipzig. In terms of sport, the Earthquakes are not a flagship of the MLS; they missed the playoffs in recent seasons.
Top star in Leipzig, Champions League winner with Chelsea
Werner’s heyday was a long time ago. In his first time at RB, the attacker, who came from VfB Stuttgart in 2016, became a national player and a crowd favorite. Between 2017 and 2023, the lightning-fast attacker played a total of 57 international matches for Germany and scored 24 goals. In 2020 he went to Chelsea FC for a transfer fee of over 50 million euros.
Career highlight: Timo Werner (right) and final goalscorer Kai Havertz (left) celebrate Chelsea’s Champions League victory in 2021.
He immediately won the Champions League with the Londoners in 2021, but after a good first season he only played a supporting role in the second year under coach Thomas Tuchel and returned to Leipzig in August 2022. However, Werner was no longer able to build on his previous achievements. A one and a half year loan to Tottenham Hotspur also ended disappointingly. After a total of 216 games and 113 goals in the RB uniform, the final farewell to Leipzig follows.
SpiO/dpa/sid
