Leeds United have added great depth in the goalkeeping department with the signing of German goalkeeper Michael Zetterer.
Providing competition for James Trafford, the 31-year-old arrives from Bundesliga outfit Eintracht Frankfurt and has signed a three-year deal in West Yorkshire.
Below are eight facts and figures about our latest addition…
The stopper makes the switch after impressing in his homeland’s top-flight last campaign. He made 22 appearances for the Deutsche Bank Park club, including facing powerhouses Borussia Dortmund, helping his team to an eighth-place finish.
Experienced at the very top of the game, the 31-year-old was given the nod five times in the UEFA Champions League in the previous term. Those included ties with Spanish giants Barcelona and then-reigning English and Italian champions Liverpool and Napoli, respectively.
The goalkeeper joined Frankfurt ahead of the previous campaign, bringing a 10-year spell with Werder Bremen to a close. There, he featured 80 times, keeping 22 cleansheets, and won a promotion from the 2. Bundesliga in the 2021/22 season.
The following term, the keeper earned a maiden outing in Germany’s top division, featuring against our final pre-season opponents FC Augsburg. His next appearance came against a Borussia Mönchengladbach team managed by Daniel Farke that had Nico Elvedi starting at the back!
Zetterer now links back up with former teammate Ilia Gruev. The duo were on the books of Bremen together for two seasons prior to the Bulgarian’s move to Elland Road three seasons ago and played nine times alongside one another for Die Grün-Weißen.
After earning his stripes as a youngster with Bremen’s II team, Michael enjoyed two loan spells away from the club, firstly with SK Austria Klagenfurt before two terms with Eredivisie outfit PEC Zwolle.
Zetterer will be the sixth player from Germany to represent Leeds United. Striker Pierre-Michel Lasogga and goalkeeper Felix Wiedwald started the trend in 2017, with defender Robin Koch joining in 2020. Current first-teamers Lukas Nmecha and Anton Stach became the fourth and fifth last summer.
While yet to debut for Die Mannschaft’s senior team, the stopper has earned international recognition at youth level. He earned five caps for Germany’s Under-20s before featuring for their Under-21s in a friendly meeting with Poland.
