Effenberg decides to join Wolfsburg
Patrick Vignal, Reuters, Berlin, Germany
Former Bayern Munich captain Stefan Effenberg had looked set to retire before he landed a shock deal with German first division club VfL Wolfsburg on Friday.
The club said the 34-year-old, who will probably end his turbulent career at Wolfsburg, had signed a one-year contract with immediate effect.
Earlier in the day, Austria Vienna said the former German midfielder had turned down an offer to join them.
Effenberg, whose contract with Bayern Munich expired at the end of last season, had said he would either join Austria or quit after previous talks with English premier league clubs Fulham and Manchester City and Turkey's Besiktas and Galatasaray failed.
"The concept and the ideas of the club have won me over," Effenberg said through a statement released by his new club.
"It's a big sporting challenge for me and I'm looking forward to it."
Wolfsburg commercial manager Peter Pander was equally excited.
"We are delighted to present our fans with the outstanding (German) player of the last few years," Pander said. "Stefan Effenberg is a major reinforcement for us."
Effenberg will first be eligible to play for his new club when they visit Arminia Bielefeld on Aug. 24, Pander added.
Wolfsburg started secret negotiations with Effenberg after failing to sign another former Bayern Munich player, Swiss international Ciriaco Sforza, who decided on Sunday to return to Kaiserslautern.
Effenberg has fond memories of Wolfsburg as it was there that he helped Moenchengladbach avoid relegation with a 2-0 victory in the final game of the 1997-98 season.
After the final whistle a tearful Effenberg fell into the arms of Friedel Rausch, then the Moenchengladbach coach.
Shortly afterwards he re-joined Bayern Munich, inspiring them to three successive league titles and victory over Valencia in the 2001 Champions League final.
He was less successful last season, looking sluggish as Bayern failed to win a title for the first time since 1995.
The Munich club then purchased three midfielders in Michael Ballack, Sebastian Deisler and Ze Roberto, and decided not to renew their contract with their playmaker, who has courted controversy throughout his career.
Effenberg was dropped from the 1994 World Cup team and sent home for giving German fans a single finger gesture as he was substituted amid boos following a poor performance in a group game against South Korea in Dallas.
Wolfsburg, a club in a small northern town near Hanover that is home to carmakers Volkswagen, were promoted to the top flight for the first time in 1997 and have not left it since. They finished 10th in last season's Bundesliga standings.