West Ham United paid a reported £27m for him in August 2024. Two years later, they loaned him to Werder Bremen for nothing. He is now the top scorer in the Bundesliga.
Niclas Füllkrug has nine league goals before the November international break. Harry Kane, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner at Bayern Munich, has four.
ESPN’s Bundesliga scoring chart has Füllkrug alone at the top after nine matchdays, a goal clear of Bayer Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick and three clear of Bayern’s Michael Olise. Kane has been more creator than finisher this autumn: his four league goals sit beside eight assists, the most in the division.
From a Dortmund final to a no-fee loan
West Ham signed Füllkrug from Borussia Dortmund in August 2024 on a four-year contract, a reward for the 16 goals he had scored to help Dortmund reach the Champions League final. One ordinary Premier League campaign and a half-season on loan at AC Milan, where he managed a single Serie A goal in the spring of 2026, turned the signing into a liability on the books.
Read also: Haaland or Suarez? Former Man City plyaer makes his choice
Werder’s answer, announced by the club on 18 August 2026, was a season-long loan with no fee and no purchase option. Füllkrug accepted a substantial pay cut to make the return home possible.
“I’ve never made a secret of the fact that Werder is a very special club for me,” he said in the club’s statement. “It was important to me to play for Werder again.”
Nine goals in nine league games
Daniel Thioune, who took over as head coach in February, introduced his new striker with a classical sketch: “Niclas is a classic striker, physically strong, excellent in the air, technically sound and able to hold up the ball.”
Nine goals in nine league games later, the sketch has become the scoreboard. Yahoo Sports called the run “incredible,” and a Rotowire report from Werder’s 1-0 defeat at Stuttgart on 8 November confirmed he had moved outright to the top of the Bundesliga scoring chart.
Read also: Raphinha pushed up his ear surgery to keep Brazil’s November call-up
He turns 34 in February.
Werder want him. There is no buy clause.
The loan runs out at the end of the season, and Werder have no option to extend it. According to a report from Read West Ham, the London club are now prepared to let him leave for minimal compensation, but the sticking point is his Premier League wages, which Werder cannot match. A permanent move would require another salary concession from the player.
Peter Niemeyer, Werder’s head of professional football, framed the signing around belonging rather than numbers: “We’re very happy that we were able to complete Niclas’ transfer. He has shown a clear commitment to Werder.”
Werder return to Bundesliga action on matchday 10 after the international break, with Füllkrug five goals clear of Kane and the only Bundesliga player in double figures across all competitions.
Read also: ‘They will get him’: Guenther Steiner makes bold Ferrari claim about Kimi Antonelli
Read also: Djokovic eyes Olympic finish in 2028, not a 25th Grand Slam
