Former Chelsea flop Werner told to find new club

Stuart Telford

• 7 Dec 2023 13:14 GMT
• 3 min read

Things have gone from bad to worse for former Chelsea forward Timo Werner, with RB Leipzig telling the player to find a new club in January.

Werner returned to Leipzig from Chelsea in August 2022 having failed to live up to his billing as Germany's first-choice striker - and best since Miroslav Klose - following his €53 million transfer two years prior.

Twenty-three goals from 89 games in all competitions later, and the Blues recouped just €20m of their initial outlay when Werner returned to the Red Bull Arena.

But having been so prolific in his first spell with the Saxony upstarts, he has now found himself behind Lois Openda, Yussuf Poulsen and Benjamin Sesko in the pecking order of strikers in his second.

"According to BILD information, Werner (under contract until 2026) was called to the office of sporting director Rouven Schröder; he was told in no uncertain terms that he could leave the club on loan in the winter," report the aformentioned's Stefan Krause and Yvonne Gabriel.

"When asked recently, Schröder didn't rule out Werner's departure: 'I wouldn't say that now. We look at the squad as normal and will certainly have players who may say they have something else in mind. We're also facing up to this matter.'"

Where might Werner go?

Manchester United have been linked with a move for Werner, owing in part to the fact that he can play at No.9 or out wide, providing cover Rasmus Hojlund, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho, but it is understood he wants first-team football in Germany to maximise his chances of making his nation's Euro 2024 squad.

Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt have both been linked with a move for Werner, but another of his former clubs in Stuttgart might end up his most logical destination.

Their top scorer Serhou Guirassy can leave for just €17.5m in January, and if Werner can prove his strike partnership with Brighton-owned Deniz Undav - who is on Julian Nagelsmann's radar for the Finals next summer - he could book his own place with it.