Official | Köln journeyman Leart Paçarada transfers to Heidenheim | OneFootball

Fullback Leart Paçarada’s intra-Bundesliga transfer has been officially confirmed. The 30-year-old will now move to his sixth German footballing club. After serving in the Werder Bremen and Bayer Leverkusen academies, Paçarada served at SV Sandhausen and captained FC St. Pauli before moving to Köln. Now, the Aachen-native will be moving to FC Heidenheim.

Paçarada was linked with a move to the Isle this summer, potentially following his former Köln head coach Gerhard Struber to Bristol City. The left back can still be satisfied with the deal that sees him join the Ostalbenschwaben, however, as Heidenheim’s acute need for someone to fill the left back position means he should get plenty of playing time.

Paçarada is just Heidenheim’s third signing of the summer and, after loan deals for Borussia Dortmund’s Diant Ramaj and Bayern Munich’s Arijon Ibrahimovic, the only player to join the BaWü-border club permanently. It’s still unclear as to whether Heidenheim have paid a transfer fee for their new signing. Sky Germany merely reports that Köln will receive a low six figure sum should the FCH avoid relegation this year.

“We are very pleased to have gained an experienced player for our team in Leart Paçarada, who has consistently proven his qualities as an absolute top performer at Sandhausen, St. Pauli and most recently at Köln,” Heidenheim CEO Holger Sanwald noted in a club statement. “Of course, we’ve known him for a long time from the many matches [mostly in the 2. Bundesliga] we’ve played against him.

“He is particularly known for his crosses and dangerous set pieces,” Sanwald’s statement continued. “We are convinced that Leart can help our team immediately.”

“The talks with Holger Sanwald and Frank Schmidt went very well, so the decision was very easy for me,” Paçarada himself said. “I’m glad that this transfer went through so quickly and I’m really looking forward to the new challenge. With my experience and mentality, I want to help us achieve our big goal of staying in the league. I’m really eager to get started right away and quickly integrate myself into the team.”

GGFN | Peter Weis