Transfer Ticker: Schalke transfers Ba to Widzew Lodz

• Ba moves from Schalke to Lodz
• Jastrzembski from Düsseldorf to Graz
• Julian Weigl leaves Mönchengladbach
• Two new defenders for Paderborn
• Ticker: All transfers and moves of the NRW clubs

Schalke 04 has found a buyer abroad for Pape Meissa Ba, even after the transfer window closed. The striker, who joined Schalke last winter, is moving to Polish first division club Widzew Lodz. The terms of the transfer have been kept confidential.

"Pape knew that he would have a hard time getting the playing time he hoped for this season. After very open discussions about his prospects, we looked for a solution together and have now found one," explained Youri Mulder, Director of Professional Football.

Fortuna Düsseldorf and winger Dennis Jastrzembski are parting ways. The 25-year-old attacker is moving to Sturm Graz. The transfer window in Austria is open until Friday. "Dennis wasn't able to get the playing time he desired with us, so his move is understandable," said Fortuna sporting director Christian Weber.

The transfer terms were kept confidential. Jastrzembski moved to Düsseldorf from Polish first division club Śląsk Wrocław in the summer of 2023. He played a total of 19 Bundesliga matches and 23 games in the 2. Bundesliga.

Second-division football club SC Paderborn has signed two more players. As announced by the club after the end of the transfer window, defenders Niklas Mohr and Jonah Sticker are joining the East Westphalian club.

The 21-year-old central defender Sticker joins from third-division club Viktoria Köln. Paderborn has not disclosed the length of his contract. This also applies to Mohr, also 21, who joins from regional league club SG Sonnenhof Großaspach in Baden-Württemberg and is initially scheduled to play for SCP's regional league team.

Julian Weigl is moving to Saudi Arabia and, according to media reports, is set to earn €21 million net over the next two years. The 29-year-old is moving from Borussia Mönchengladbach to Al-Qadsiah. Borussia announced this on the last day of the transfer window.

The defensive midfielder moved from Benfica Lisbon to the Lower Rhine region three years ago and was Borussia's captain last season. Gladbach are expected to receive a transfer fee of just under eight million euros for Weigl.

Adriano Grimaldi is leaving SC Paderborn and joining 1. FC Nürnberg. Both clubs have agreed not to disclose the terms of the transfer. The 34-year-old joined Paderborn from 1. FC Saarbrücken in 2023.

Bayer Leverkusen has finally found a buyer for Victor Boniface. The Nigerian is joining league rivals Werder Bremen on a one-year loan, after a recent transfer to AC Milan fell through despite an agreement between the two clubs following the attacker's medical.

Gustavo Puerta is also leaving the Werkself and joining Spanish second-division club Real Racing Club Santander. The 22-year-old midfielder was most recently loaned to English second-division club Hull City, but returned to Leverkusen due to the club's transgender ban.

Third-division club MSV Duisburg has strengthened its squad with striker Andy Visser. The 20-year-old most recently played for Vitesse Arnhem, but was without a club after the club revoked his license.

Third-division club Viktoria Köln has strengthened its squad with the signing of defender Joel Agyekum. The 20-year-old joins Cologne on a one-season loan from newly promoted Bundesliga side Hamburger SV.

Fortuna Düsseldorf has extended King Manu's contract for another year, but has loaned the 21-year-old to third-division club Engerie Cottbus for the remainder of the current season. Giovanni Haag is also leaving Fortuna on loan, joining French second-division club Red Star Paris for the current season.

New to Düsseldorf is Tim Breithaupt. The 23-year-old defensive midfielder joins on loan from FC Augsburg. Fortuna also secured a purchase option.

After a dream start to the new Bundesliga season, 1. FC Köln has made further personnel additions. As the newly promoted club, which started with two wins, announced shortly before the end of the summer transfer window on Monday evening, winger Alessio Castro-Montes is moving from Belgian champions Royale Union Saint-Gilloise to Cologne. The 28-year-old has signed a contract until 2028.

Schalke 04 signed striker Christian Gomis shortly before the end of the transfer deadline. The 25-year-old joins from FC Winterthur in Switzerland and has signed a contract with the Royal Blues until 2029. "With his running ability and intense style of play, Christian Gomis fits the profile we have defined for strikers. He has improved year after year and has potential for development," said sporting director Youri Mulder.

Ilyes Hamache, on the other hand, is leaving Schalke and moving to French second division club SC Amiens on a one-year loan, which also has a purchase option for the 22-year-old attacker.

Bayer Leverkusen has signed Argentine midfielder Ezequiel Fernández from Al-Qadsiah FC in the Saudi Pro League. Fernández, who moved to Saudi Arabia from top Argentine club Boca Juniors a year ago, has signed a contract with Leverkusen until 2030.

VfL Bochum has strengthened its squad with a second talent from Bayer Leverkusen, following the signing of Francis Onyeka. 19-year-old striker Fafir Alfa-Ruprecht joins VfL Bochum on loan until the end of the season. The German U18 international spent the past few years training at Manchester City and moved to Leverkusen this summer.

Michael Obafemi also joins VfL on loan from newly promoted English Premier League side Burnley. "Michael Obafemi embodies the type of player we've been missing: a highly mobile striker who both looks for the goal himself and provides the assist for the last or second-to-last pass," said Bochum's sporting director Dirk Dufner about the Irish international.

Arminia Bielefeld reached an agreement with Monju Thaddäus Momuluh on the final day of the transfer window. The 23-year-old attacker joins from league rivals Hannover 96 and signs a long-term contract with Arminia. Both clubs have agreed not to disclose the exact terms of the transfer.

Alemannia Aachen has signed central defender Marius Wegmann. The 26-year-old was on trial with the Black and Yellows last week and has now been given a permanent contract. Wegmann was most recently under contract with Wehen Wiesbaden.

Kevin Goden, on the other hand, has left the club. The 26-year-old striker will now play for Sportfreunde Siegen in the Regionalliga West.

Borussia Mönchengladbach has loaned Yannik Engelhardt from Como 1907. The defensive midfielder joined the Italian first division club from Fortuna Düsseldorf for eight million euros in the summer of 2024. According to media reports, there is no purchase option.

Engelhardt played 26 games in Serie A last season, scoring one goal. At Gladbach, Engelhardt could replace Julian Weigl, who is close to moving to Saudi Arabia. "Yannik Engelhardt is a player whose development we have been observing for a very long time. With his profile, he covers almost all positions in defense," said Borussia's sporting director Roland Virkus.

Striker Jona Niemiec is leaving second-division soccer club Fortuna Düsseldorf for Denmark. After four years together, the 23-year-old attacker is joining Odense BK. Fortuna did not disclose the terms of the transfer in its statement on Monday.

Niemiec's contract with the Rhinelanders originally ran until summer 2026. The striker initially moved from TSG Sprockhövel to Düsseldorf's U23 team in summer 2021 before signing a professional contract in 2023. Niemiec has scored eight goals and provided ten assists in 77 matches for Fortuna Düsseldorf.

Bayer Leverkusen has signed winger Eliesse Ben Seghir. The 20-year-old attacking talent joins from French Champions League participant AS Monaco and has signed a contract with the Werkself until 2030, the Bundesliga club announced. According to media reports, Bayer is expected to pay a transfer fee of over €30 million. The left winger played for the French U17, U18, and U19 teams in his youth career and decided to play for the Moroccan national team in 2024.

Shortly before the transfer window closed, Preußen Münster made another move in the transfer market, signing midfielder Zidan Sertdemir. The 20-year-old most recently played for Danish first division club FC Nordsjælland. Between 2021 and 2023, he played for Bayer Leverkusen. In October 2020, Sertdemir, who has Turkish roots, made his debut for the Danish U16 national team. Since then, he has also played for Denmark's U17, U19, and U20 national teams.

Fortuna Düsseldorf has loaned another defender shortly before the end of the transfer deadline. The 25-year-old Norwegian Jesper Daland joins from Welsh club Cardiff City, which plays in the English third tier. Fortuna Düsseldorf, according to a statement on Saturday, secured a purchase option. Daland was relegated with Cardiff in the summer.

The signing of the defensive midfielder became necessary due to the departure of Jamil Siebert. The 23-year-old Düsseldorf native joined US Lecce in the Italian Serie A for €5.5 million.

Goalkeeper Elias Bördner is leaving Alemannia Aachen. The third-division club announced on Saturday that they have agreed to terminate their contract. The 23-year-old Bördner, who made a total of 15 competitive appearances for Alemannia, is moving to Bonner SC in the Regionalliga West.

VfL Bochum has loaned Samuel Bamba to Dutch second-division club Willem II Tilburg until the end of the current season. According to VfL, the loan does not include an option to buy. Bamba has made ten competitive appearances for Bochum so far. "Sammy needs regular competitive practice, which is the goal of this loan," says VfL Sporting Director Dirk Dufner. "It was his express wish to generate more playing time and pursue this loan."

Borussia Dortmund has strengthened its squad with the signing of Portuguese striker Fabio Silva. The 23-year-old joins from Wolverhampton Wanderers and signs a contract until 2030.

FC Schalke 04 is planning for the time being without striker Moussa Sylla, who may be on the verge of a transfer. "After reporting sick, he held talks to clarify his future. There are now two options: Either there is a short-term transfer or Moussa Sylla remains a Schalke 04 player. We are planning for Sunday without Moussa," the second-division club announced on the X platform.

Third-division club Rot-Weiss Essen has signed a striker on loan from 1. FC Kaiserslautern. 27-year-old Jannik Mause will be joining RWE in the future. "In Jannik Mause, we have found a center forward who we are convinced will add a new dimension to our squad," said RWE head coach Uwe Koschinat.

Dion Berisha, on the other hand, will be leaving Hafenstrasse. RWE announced on Friday that they had agreed to an early termination of the 22-year-old winger's contract.

1. FC Köln has prematurely extended the contract with Julian Pauli (20), initially giving the talented defender match practice in the 2nd Bundesliga. Pauli joins Dynamo Dresden on loan for the current season; his contract in Cologne is now valid until 2028. Pauli was one of the Cologne revelations in the last promotion season, but has had little prospect of playing time since the signing of Dutchman Rav van den Berg.

Second-division newly promoted Arminia Bielefeld has signed left-back Arne Sicker. The 28-year-old played for SV Elversberg last season and joins the Alm on a free transfer. "With the signing of Arne, we are strengthening our defense with another player who knows the league and won't need any time to get used to it," said sporting director Michael Mutzel.

After three matchdays with just two goals scored and a meager point, third-division football club Alemannia Aachen has stepped up its attacking game once again. Lars Gindorf has joined the Tivoli from second-division side Hannover 96 on loan until the end of the season. The 24-year-old was a regular for the Lower Saxony club last season, making 24 second-division appearances, but has only played one game in the Regionalliga Nord this season, where he shone with two goals and one assist.

Left-back Leart Pacarada, who was released from the squad, is leaving 1. FC Köln and joining league rivals 1. FC Heidenheim. The two Bundesliga clubs announced the 30-year-old's transfer on Thursday; just a few days ago, the defender had been dropped from the squad by Cologne coach Lukas Kwasniok. The 30-time Kosovo international has signed a contract with Heidenheim until 2027.

Left winger Mika Schroers is leaving second-division club Arminia Bielefeld for a year and joining Alemannia Aachen. The 23-year-old is expected to gain match practice in the third division.

"After a thorough analysis of the past few months, we have jointly decided that a loan is the best opportunity for Mika to gain important playing time at a high level," said Arminia sporting director Michael Mutzel regarding his departure: "The one-year loan to Alemannia Aachen will enable him to do this."

As expected, Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund has signed Argentine U20 international Aaron Anselmino, responding to significant defensive concerns. The 20-year-old joins on a one-year loan from Chelsea, the Black and Yellows announced on Wednesday. The center-back could make his debut in Sunday's home game against Union Berlin.

Bayer Leverkusen, the German football runner-up, has found a prominent reinforcement for the right wing. Five-time Champions League winner Lucas Vázquez joins coach Erik ten Hag's team on a free transfer and signs a contract until summer 2027. His contract with Real Madrid expired in the summer. The Spaniard is set to replace Jeremie Frimpong (who joined Liverpool).

Borussia Dortmund has signed Carney Chukwuemeka from Chelsea FC. The 21-year-old, who already played for BVB on loan in the second half of the last season and during the FIFA Club World Cup, has now committed to the eight-time German champions until June 30, 2030.

A few days before the transfer deadline, Viktoria Köln has strengthened its attacking squad by signing Soichiro Kozuki. The Japanese winger joins Schäl Sick from 1860 Munich. The 24-year-old previously played for FC Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga.

With Niklas Castelle, a familiar face is returning to third-division club Alemannia Aachen. The 22-year-old attacker will join on loan from league rivals SSV Ulm 1846 for the 2025/26 season. He was already on loan with Alemannia during the second half of last season. In 19 matches for the Black and Yellows, he scored two goals and provided five assists.

Fortuna Düsseldorf has signed Slovenian striker Zan Celar. The center forward joins the Rhineland club on loan from English second-division side Queens Park Rangers. Fortuna Düsseldorf also secured a purchase option for the 17-time capped international. Celar arrived in London in the summer of 2024. However, an injury slowed the attacker's progress early on. In his debut season, he made only 24 competitive appearances and scored two goals. He had previously caused a stir in Switzerland, scoring 40 goals in 95 league matches for FC Lugano.

Arminia Bielefeld has brought back midfielder Marius Wörl from league rivals Hannover 96. The 21-year-old is joining the East Westphalian club on a permanent basis, as both clubs announced. The Bavarian native's contract with Hannover was originally valid until 2027. Wörl has already played for Arminia for the past two seasons – albeit on loan. With Bielefeld, he achieved promotion to the 2. Bundesliga and reached the DFB-Pokal final last season.

The transfer of Giovanni Reyna from Borussia Dortmund to Borussia Mönchengladbach is complete. As the club from the Lower Rhine region announced, the 22-year-old attacker has signed a contract until June 30, 2028. The transfer had been speculated about for days.

Second-division football club Karlsruher SC has loaned striker Shio Fukuda from Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach. As the Baden-Württemberg club announced on Friday, there is also a contractually agreed purchase option for next summer. The striker moved from his native Japan to the Lower Rhine region at the age of 18, but failed to make a breakthrough. In his eleven first-division appearances, he played just 87 minutes.

Central defender Jamil Siebert is leaving second-division club Fortuna Düsseldorf to continue his career in Italy's Serie A. The 23-year-old joins first-division club US Lecce with immediate effect. The Düsseldorf native has progressed through all of Fortuna's youth teams since 2010 and made his 2. Bundesliga debut in the 2020/21 season. "It is with a heavy heart that we are letting Jamil go. On the other hand, we wanted to give him the opportunity to take advantage of this great opportunity," said Klaus Allofs, Fortuna's Board Member for Sport and Communications.

Second-division club Schalke 04 has strengthened its squad with Finn Porath. The 28-year-old midfielder has signed a contract with Gelsenkirchen until 2027. "Finn is a versatile player who has performed well in Kiel for years," says Youri Mulder, Director of Football. "With his intense style of play and his keen eye for game situations, he fits in very well with our team."

Bayer Leverkusen announced three transfers on Wednesday. First, the departure of Amine Adli to AFC Bournemouth was announced. Shortly thereafter, Adli's replacement, Argentinian midfielder Claudio Echeverri, was announced. The 19-year-old joins the club on a one-year loan from Manchester City. The Leverkusen club also announced the signing of French central defender Loïc Badé. The German international joins from Sevilla FC and has signed a contract until 2030.

Sebastien Haller is leaving Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund for good. As BVB announced, the striker is now moving permanently to FC Utrecht in the Netherlands. Haller is returning to a club "that means a lot to him and for which he has played regularly in recent months," said sporting director Sebastian Kehl. The striker was already loaned to the Eredivisie club last season and also played there from 2015 to 2017.

Taylan Bulut will play for Besiktas Istanbul in the future. The Turkish first division club and FC Schalke 04 agreed on an immediate transfer of the 19-year-old on Saturday. The transfer fee is unknown, but it is reportedly around six million euros. "We as a club have been in close contact with Taylan and his agent in recent weeks. The move to Besiktas is the right decision for everyone, both from a sporting and financial perspective," said Youri Mulder, Director of Professional Football at FC Schalke 04.

1. FC Köln continues its shopping spree, signing Dutch U21 international Rav van den Berg. The 1.90-meter-tall defender is moving from English club Middlebrough FC to the Bundesliga and, with a reported transfer fee of between eight and ten million euros, is Cologne's record signing this summer. The 21-year-old is also the newly promoted club's tenth new signing.

Our sources:

• News agencies SID and dpa
• Press releases from the clubs