Timo Werner has joined Tottenham on loan until the end of the season. Spurs then have the option to buy the forward for £15m. The Germany international won the Champions League at Chelsea but has struggled for goals and been plagued by injury since returning to Leipzig with a Euros spot in doubt.
Just three years ago, Timo Werner was the rising star of German football. With 78 goals in 127 appearances for RB Leipzig, he looked set to conquer the Premier League when Chelsea paid over £47m for him.
Now Tottenham have agreed a deal with Leipzig who could sign him permanently for just £15m in the summer should his half-season loan run out.
It’s a big drop in valuation, but it reflects the struggles Werner has gone through in recent seasons. At 27, he should be in his prime. Instead, he’s at a crossroads in his career, needing to prove his capabilities again – to himself as much as to everyone else.
That big-money move to Chelsea brought a Champions League triumph, but it wasn’t a successful move for Werner personally. 10 goals in 56 games was a miserable return from an 18.54 Expected Goals total over those two seasons. Big chances were missed, offsides were routine.
Watch Timo Werner’s best Premier League goals as he moves closer to a loan move to Tottenham.
He told Sky Sports how the Covid restrictions have left him feeling “a bit lonely” and his form on the pitch has not helped him settle.
A return to Leipzig in August 2022 was supposed to reignite the spark, but instead an ankle injury before the World Cup in Qatar was another blow. There have been just two Bundesliga goals and two starts in eight appearances for Leipzig this season.
Werner will be desperate for this surprise move to Tottenham to make it. Will he recapture the goalscoring form of his early seasons in Leipzig? Sky Germany reporter Philipp Hinze, who covers the German club closely, says that while there is optimism for Werner’s return to this level, it will not be easy.
“It’s a big question mark behind the name Timo Werner,” he says.
“Before moving to Chelsea, he was a cold striker. He was really, really tough. In a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, he was a clear target. In the last two years, he wasn’t.
“I think he needs two, three or five good moments to be level again, but it’s not easy. The Premier League, he knows that, but it’s such a difficult league. It’s tougher than the Bundesliga. So it’s a long, but i think it is possible.
“The good thing is that he knows the Premier League from his Chelsea days. He knows London, so he doesn’t need any time to adapt to the Premier League or England. But I think his confidence level was very low. LAST YEAR.
“The start was his absence from the Qatar World Cup and now it’s not a good time in Leipzig. Maybe under Ange Postecoglou, if he can get regular playing time, if he gets a goal maybe in the first game… let’s see. “
Heung-Min Son’s international duties at the Asian Cup will give Werner the chance to make a fast start. But Postecoglou’s role could be key.
Hinze says the Tottenham boss has already made an impact on Werner, following a phone conversation between the pair. And Werner is a player who needs to feel confident again after the collapse of RB Leipzig.
Leipzig’s record signing Lois Openda, Jussuf Poulsen and Benjamin Cesko have all been preferred to Werner, despite the latter being one of the top earners alongside Dani Olmo.
“The talks between Tottenham and Werner, especially with Ange, have already given him more confidence and he is really excited [for] the transfer,” says Hinze, “It’s not like the mood that’s coming to Tottenham now [is] with the head down. He’s looking forward to it.
“It’s his last chance to be in the Euros [squad]so he should be a good player in the second part of the season.”
Paul Merson praises Timo Werner’s pace in attack, especially compared to his Football Saturday colleague Clinton Morrison.
Werner’s Euro hopes are boosted by the fact that Julian Nagelsmann is the Germany boss, the man who first coached him in Leipzig.
“Nagelsmann knows how good he can be, how cold he can be, how fast he can be, how good he can be on the counter-attack,” says Hinze. “But of course, the Germany team has very good strikers. Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane, Kai Havertz… They are guys in good shape, good mood.
With Timo Werner linked with a surprise return to the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur in January, take a look at his five best RB Leipzig goals during his time in the Bundesliga.
“The Germany fans know how good Werner can be, but they also know that his form has been really, really bad and his confidence has been bad.”
Postecoglou also clearly sees the potential. Whether Werner can become the player he once promised to become looks set to be an interesting story in the second half of this Premier League season.
Follow the January transfer window with Sky Sports
The winter transfer window is now open and will close at 11pm in England and midnight in Scotland Thursday, February 1, 2024.
To ensure alignment with Europe’s major leagues, the end dates have been set following discussions with the EFL, DFL, Serie A, LaLiga and LFP, who will all close their summer and winter seasons on September 1 and February 1 respectively.
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumors on our exclusive Transfer Hub blog at Sky Sports’ digital platforms, while you can also cover the difference and analytics Sky Sports Newsincluding daily transfer shows and listen to the Transfer Talk podcast.