Leeds United have today confirmed the signing of German forward Pierre-Michel Lasogga, who moves to Elland Road on a season-long loan from the Bundesliga outfit Hamburger SV.
Lasogga, 25, becomes United's second signing on deadline day following the arrival of Swedish prodigy Paweł Cibicki, and will sport the famed number nine shirt after it was vacated due to the recent departure of Chris Wood.
The Gladbeck-born forward spent his formative years turning out for Bayer Leverkusen II and Hertha Berlin II, before breaking into the first team at Hertha in 2010. He would make 64 league appearances for the capital club in both the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2, before moving to Hamburger SV on loan for the 2013-14 season.
In his inaugural season at the Volksparkstadion, Lasogga recorded a commendable return of 13 goals in 20 Bundesliga matches. He scored a hat-trick away to Nuremburg in only his second game as a HSV player, and also scored a goal of crucial importance away to SpVgg Greuther Fürth in the relegation play-off - a contribution that ensured Hamburg's survival with Die Rothosen defeating the Bavarians on away goals.
Lasogga's imperious form throughout that campaign prompted the Hamburg management to acquire his services permanently, with the player signing a five-year contract. The 2014-15 season would be an underwhelming campaign for him, yielding just four goals in 26 Bundesliga appearances. He doubled his tally for the subsequent 2015-16 season, scoring on eight occasions and playing in a total of 30 matches.
Last season saw Lasogga frequently afflicted by injury, and he netted one solitary goal in 20 league appearances. The goal he did score, though, would prove imperative; an injury-time equaliser away to Schalke 04 in the penultimate game of the season allowed Hamburg a chance to avoid automatic relegation with a win over Wolfsburg. He would miss the game against Die Wolfe through injury, but HSV would defeat their opposition 2-1 to condemn Wolfsburg to the play-off and secure their survival for another season.
In addition to his exploits at both Hertha Berlin and Hamburg, Lasogga has represented Germany at Under-21 level; between 2011 and 2013, he scored four goals in 11 appearances for the side.
Lasogga will now be tasked with spearheading the Leeds United attack for the remainder of the season, and the season-long loan represents a clear opportunity for the 6 ft 2 target man to rediscover the form that earnt him his lucrative deal at Hamburg just three years ago.