Chelsea announce Schurrle signing

AlexBatak 12 years ago

Chelsea, Italy 204 2707

Chelsea Football Club is delighted to announce the transfer of Andre Schurrle from Bayer Leverkusen.

The 22-year-old moves to Stamford Bridge from the Bundesliga club, whom he joined back in 2011.

It was announced on 13 June that Chelsea FC and Bayer Leverkusen had reached an agreement for Schurrle's transfer. He has signed a five-year contract and will wear the No.14 shirt.

'I am so happy now I have signed and it is an honour for me to play for this club, with this team and for these great fans,' Schurrle said. 'I am really looking forward to it.'

A versatile attacker, Schurrle can play either as a creative wide player or a central striker. His ability to drift inside from either flank is one of his biggest strengths and he has developed a penchant for scoring goals of the spectacular variety.

A German international, he began his career at local club Ludwigshafener SC, before moving to Mainz in 2009.

He made his league debut against the team he would go on to serve, playing in a 2-2 draw for Mainz against Leverkusen on the opening day of the 2009/10 season.

The following month, Schurrle showcased his goalscoring pedigree with his first strikes at senior level, netting a brace in a 3-2 win at VFL Bochum.

In what was an impressive first season in the Bundesliga, he was a near ever-present and scored five goals in 34 appearances as Mainz finished ninth.

Just over a year after making his debut for Mainz, however, it was announced that Schurrle had signed a five-year contract with Leverkusen, and would join the club at the culmination of the 2010/11 season.

His second and final season with Mainz saw the youngster bow out in fine fashion, playing a pivotal role as they qualified for the UEFA Europa League by finishing fifth.

Schurrle, who played mainly as a striker, found the target in the first three league games of the campaign, and ended the season with a place in the history books after scoring a club-record 15 goals in 34 appearances.

Having completed his move to Leverkusen, Schurrle scored on his debut in a 4-3 German Cup win against Dynamo Dresden.

His league debut came against his former club, with Leverkusen falling to a 2-0 defeat against Mainz, and Schurrle scored his first league goal for the club in October during a 2-2 draw with Borussia Monchengladbach, before getting off the mark in European competition against Valencia a few days later.

Towards the end of the campaign, he scored in a 1-1 draw at Hamburg, and after also netting in a 3-3 draw against Hertha Berlin, he scored the only goal of the game to secure three points at Hoffenheim.

He made 40 appearances during his first season at Leverkusen, scoring nine goals in the process.

Schurrle's second season at Leverkusen proved more productive in terms of scoring goals, but it was his overall contribution, playing predominantly wide on the left, which continued to impress.

He scored the first goal of his final season at the club in a 3-1 win at Augsburg, and soon after provided a crucial assist for team-mate Stefan Kiebling as Leverkusen became the first team to inflict defeat on eventual champions Bayern Munich.

November proved a particularly fruitful period for Schurrle as he netted three times in the space of a fortnight, with goals against Fortuna Dusseldorf, Rapid Vienna and Schalke.

As the season edged towards its conclusion he scored twice in the reverse fixture against Fortuna Dusseldorf, while netting another brace the following month in a 5-0 win over Hoffenheim.

Schurrle ended the 2012/13 season, and his time at Leverkusen, having scored 14 goals in 43 matches.

After representing Germany at both Under-19 and Under-21 level, the young attacker earned his first call-up to the senior squad in November 2010, before being handed his debut as a late substitute in a friendly against Sweden.

He scored his first senior international goal in May 2011 in a 2-1 win against Uruguay, and after scoring two more goals in qualification he was named in Joachim Low's 23-man squad for the 2012 European Championships.

Source: Chelsea FC official website.