City sign midfielder Lukas Rupp from Hoffenheim
Lukas Rupp became Norwich City's first permanent signing of the window after his move from Hoffenheim. Picture: Norwich City FC - Credit: Norwich City FC
Norwich City have made their second signing of the window with the purchase of Lukas Rupp for an undisclosed fee from Hoffenheim.
The experienced midfielder has signed a two-and-a-half year deal following the loan capture of Hertha Berlin's attacking midfielder Ondrej Duda.
Rupp, who turned 29 last week, has clocked up nine seasons in the Bundesliga for a host of clubs including Monchengladbach, Padberborn, Stuttgart and Hoffenheim.
He was also a club mate of Mario Vrancic at SC Paderborn in the 2014/15 campaign and played with Marco Stiepermann in the German Under-20 set-up.
The former Karlsruhe trainee was entering the final few months of his current Hoffenheim contract - who sit seventh in the German top flight during the mid-winter break - but has swapped that for City's Premier League survival bid with reports in Germany the Canaries have paid an initial 500,000 EURO transfer fee.
Norwich City's new signing Lukas Rupp in action at Carrow Road for one of his old clubs Borussia Monchengladbach in a 2012 friendly Picture: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
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"It's a childhood dream. I was in the Bundesliga for ten years now and it's a new chapter for me," he said, speaking to the club's official site. "I wanted to be part of the team here and help the team stay in the Premier League.
"I know Mario Vrancic, I played with him at Paderborn, and from the national team I know Marco Stiepermann.
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"It's the first time that I've been out of Germany to play football. But I know this stadium already because with Monchengladbach, I had a friendly game against Norwich about seven years ago.
"I'm looking forward to training with the guys. Saturday is an important game and I can't wait to get started. I was in the training camp in Marbella with Hoffenheim and then two days later, I'm here so it's been very quick.
"But I'm very happy to be here."
Rupp can operate right across midfield, including wide on the right. The German had only made seven appearances for Hoffenheim this season, but did play in both the Champions League and Europa League during a three-and-a-half year stint after moving from Stuttgart for a reported £4.5m in 2016.
City head coach Daniel Farke admits Rupp's versatility will be a major asset.
"Lukas is a great guy who has a lot of experience," he added, on the official site. "He's played for some very big clubs in Germany and has a lot of game time in the Bundesliga.
"He's a versatile player who can play in a number of positions in the midfield and has also played at full-back.
"He'll be a valuable option for us going forward and is a very good character. He's an important signing for us and we're happy that a player of his experience has committed to us."
Rupp will wear the number seven shirt for the Canaries.
