Union Berlin forward Benedict Hollerbach is switching to Bundesliga rival Mainz

BERLIN (AP) — Union Berlin is losing its main attacking threat for next season after selling Benedict Hollerbach to Bundesliga rival Mainz.

Hollerbach is leaving after playing 65 competitive games for Union, the Köpenick-based team said Sunday. Kicker magazine reported that Mainz was playing a fee of 10 million euros ($11.4 million) for the 23-year-old forward.

Hollerbach was getting a four-year contract, Mainz said, to become the club’s second signing of the offseason after young Austrian defender Konstantin Schopp joined from Sturm Graz the day before.

Hollerbach scored 14 goals in 62 league games for Union, with nine of them coming last season to help the team stay in the Bundesliga for another year. The team’s top scorer also set up four goals for teammates who mostly struggled to create openings without him on the field.

“Benedict continuously developed during his time with us and always gave his all for the club,” Union sporting director Horst Heldt said.

Hollerbach joined Stuttgart in 2019 after five years with Bayern Munich, then joined third-division Wehen Wiesbaden, helping it to promotion in 2023.

Union was reportedly on the verge of reinvesting some of the transfer fee to make Serbian forward Andrej Ilić’s loan move from Lille permanent – Ilić scored seven goals in 16 Bundesliga appearances for Union last season – and hoping to conclude 20-year-old forward Ilyas Ansah’s signing from second-division Paderborn next week.

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