German football club Wolfsburg has confirmed the transfer of World Cup-winning midfielder Julian Draxler to Paris Saint-Germain. The player will complete his move to the French club in the January transfer window.
"We have had intense and constructive discussions with Julian Draxler and his management as well as with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in recent days and finally achieved a very good result for all sides," Wolfsburg's head of sport Olaf Rebbe said in a statement on Saturday.
The two clubs agreed the financial details of the deal would remain confidential, Wolfsburg said. But some media reports claim that the move has been flinalized for 42 million euros (43.9 million euros).
"Of course I am sad to see Julian go, because he is an outstanding player," said Wolfsburg's coach Valerien Ismael.
"On the other hand, I think this is the right move for everyone. In both recent games against Frankfurt and Gladbach, he once again gave everything he had, and showed that he cares about our club. I hope he finds a new challenge in France," Ismael added.
Draxler was said to be a target for the Premier League club Arsenal.
The 23-year-old moved to Wolfsburg from Schalke in August 2015 for 35 million euros. He scored five goals in 34 league games for Wolfsburg. Altogether, he has 23 goals in 153 Bundesliga games, and three in 27 games for the German national team.
Wolfsburg are currently on the 13th spot in Bundesliga after having played 16 games. Defending champions PSG started the current season poorly and are five points behind leaders Nice and third in the French Ligue 1.
Who is your Bundesliga player of the year?
Who was the best Bundesliga player in 2016? One of the top goal scorers or one of the league's defensive artists? We are looking for the best Bundesliga player in 2016. These are the 11 players are on the ballot.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Meissner
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Dortmund's lightning-quick forward proved once again that he is one of the best goal scorers in the Bundesliga. After scoring seven times in the second half of the 2015-16, he has started this season scoring 16 goals in 16 games, a mark which leads the league.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Meissner
Robert Lewandowski
No forward is as much of a complete package as Bayern Munich's Lewandowski. He scored 26 Bundesliga goals for Bayern in 2016, more than any other player. He scored multiple goals in eight Bundesliga games, one of which was a hat trick.
Eyes open! This Bundesliga forward also showed a lot of potential! 2016 was the most successful of the Cologne striker's career. The Frenchman scored 20 goals this year, something that he had not previously done since moving to Germany three years ago.
Image: picture-alliance/G. Chai von der Laage
Vedad Ibisevic
Hertha Berlin's Bosnian national team striker was promoted to club captain at the end of last season and he has scored eight goals this campaign to reach the 100-goal milestone in the Bundesliga.
Image: picture-alliance/Fotostand
Julian Weigl
Almost nobody had expected Julian Weigl to shine the way he has for Borussia Dortmund in 2016. He solidified his place in the team over the past 12 months and was called up to the German national team. He builds the play for BVB from the back as a passing machine, wins a lot of tackles and makes few mistakes.
Image: Reuters/R. Marchante
Joshua Kimmich
No Bundesliga player is more versatile than this 22-year-old Bayern Munich player. Joshua Kimmich can play centrally or wide in defense, in defensive midfield, in attacking midfield or on an offensive flank. Over the next few years, he could develop into one of the most formidable players in the Bundesliga.
Image: picture-alliance/Avanti/R. Poller
Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez
The Mexican forward was one of the reasons Bayer Leverkusen made it back to the Champions League places at the end of the 2015-16 season. The start of this season was also impressive: The "small pea" scored a hat trick against Mainz in September. He has stagnated a little bit towards the end of 2016, but so have Leverkusen as a whole.
Image: picture-alliance/augenklick/firo
Emil Forsberg
RB Leipzig has impressed on the whole this season, but the Swede has stood apart from the rest. As the focal point in the Red Bull attack, the left-sided midfielder sets up a lot of goals and scores regularly himself.
Image: picture-alliance/Sven Simon
Jerome Boateng
Despite the addition of Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng will always be the leader in Bayern's back line. The only thing that has slowed Boateng down in 2016 has been injuries. Despite that, the defender was recognized for his strong performance by winning Germany's footballer of the year.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/I. Fassbender
Ralf Fährmann
Despite the fact that he consistently performs at a high level, Schalke's Ralf Fährmann has no chance of being called up to the national team, a fate that he shares with a number of German goalkeepers.
Image: Getty Images/C.Koepsel
Sandro Wagner
Often treading the line of what's allowed in football, the playing style of the 1,94-meter (6-foot-4) forward may be annoy his opponents but he is invaluable to his own team. Wagner's contributions in 2016 saved Darmstadt from relegation and helped propel Hoffenheim to fifth place in the standings as the year draws to a close.
