RB Leipzig Signing Sorloth To Fill Up Werner Void

RB Leipzig has finally found someone to take over from Timo Werner who is now with Chelsea FC. The Red Bulls sealed a $23 million deal with Crystal Palace and Trabzonspor for Alexander Sorloth despite some complications. The Norway international was in the middle of a two-year loan deal between the two clubs.

To most, Sorloth may not be among the top names one would recall in the world of football. But for those who have been following the sport religiously, the 24-year-old is someone who has been making waves.

Sorloth gained attention when he was still in Turkey. He accounted for 33 goals in 49 appearances across all competitions, Goal reported. Tottenham was the club heavily linked to Sorloth so the sudden entry of Die Roten caught most by surprise.

Sorloth failed to return to Trabzonspor after he was called up by Norway for the Nations League games. Club president Ahmet Agaoglu, later on, revealed that negotiations were underway about a potential exit of the Norwegian striker.

"We are meeting with Leipzig and Tottenham, ourselves and Crystal Palace. We are both entitled to this transfer, we will act in Trabzonspor's best interests," Agaoglu said via Sky Sports.

And from there, Leipzig was the team that won the chase for Solroth. The new signing was announced via the team’s official website.

"New signing in attack! Die Roten Bullen have signed attacker Alexander Sorloth, effective immediately," the statement read. "RB Leipzig have reached an agreement with Crystal Palace and Trabzonspor for a transfer for the 24-year-old. The Norway international has signed a five-year contract until 2025 and will wear the No 19 shirt."

But as mentioned earlier, the transaction was not something that was easily done. Leipzig will shell out $23 million that will be split between Crystal Palace and Trabzonspor. Aside from that, both clubs will also get an additional $2.3 million in performance-bonuses. 20% of any profit made from future sales involving Sorloth was also included in the deal.

Sorloth will have big shoes to fill as Leipzig tries to start a post-Werner era. They are coming off a season where they ended with a semifinal finish in the European competition. They will be back in contention this 2020-21 after taking third place in the Bundesliga behind Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.