The Turkish loan of Gerrit Holtmann from VfL Bochum is to be ended prematurely. Darmstadt 98 are said to be interested. What coach Torsten Lieberknecht says about the winger.

Seven appearances, one start and one goal: Gerrit Holtmann would have imagined his time in Turkey with first division club Antalyaspor to be different.

And that is probably why it has now come to a premature end. VfL Bochum loaned the 28-year-old to the Süper Lig before the current season. As the WAZ reports, the loan will be terminated prematurely and Holtmann will return to Germany six months earlier than originally planned.

However, the winger will not be an issue for VfL in the second half of the season. Instead, he could strengthen Darmstadt 98. According to the WAZ, Bochum and SVD are currently negotiating the terms of a transfer. Among other things, it needs to be clarified whether Holtmann will join the Lilies permanently or whether he will be sent out on loan again. His contract in Bochum runs until 2025.

However, according to Darmstadt coach Torsten Lieberknecht, no final announcement is expected before the upcoming Bundesliga matchday. “Otherwise, we’ll see,” said the 50-year-old at a press conference on Tuesday. Holtmann is an interesting player who could help a team. “But I don’t know if that’s us. “

What is clear, however, is that Holtmann would be meeting a former supporter in Lieberknecht. The coach helped the two-time Philippines international make his professional debut in 2015, bringing him up from the second team at Eintracht Braunschweig to the second division team. Via Paderborn and Mainz, Holtmann ended up in Bochum in 2020. He played 92 competitive matches for VfL (eleven goals, 15 assists) – more than for any other club.

Lieberknecht: “Gerrit is someone who has shown why he moved from OSC Bremerhaven to Braunschweig and was then sold to Mainz for €3.5 million, who fought relegation battles with Bochum and also performed well.” And possibly soon again – in the Darmstadt jersey