Oli Burke enjoyed a dream debut for Werder Bremen after bagging a brace
The former Celtic and Scotland forward made the switch to Germany from Sheffield United this week. Bremen paid an undisclosed fee to bring in Burke from Bramall Lane. The 25-year-old returns to Germany five years after leaving RB Leipzig. The £13million fee they shelled out was a record for a Scottish teenager at the time.
However, Burke ’s time at the energy drink-backed outfit was brought to an end just one year into a five-year contract. RB’s then sporting director Ralf Rangnick described Burke as having an “empty hard drive” when it came to learning the defensive side of the game. But the early signs are encouraging after he netted a double in Bremen’s 2-1 friendly win over Karlsruher. He drew them level just a minute into the second half, before giving them the lead with four minutes to go.
"The two goals really mean a lot to me,” he said afterwards. “The coach and my teammates still don't know me too well, so I'd like to show them what I'm capable of."
Teammate Marco Freidl added: "Oliver Burke is a really great guy. It's really good for him to come here as a new player and score two goals straight away."
Burke first left Germany to join West Brom in 2017, who loaned him to Celtic a year later. He scored four goals in 19 appearances for the Hoops, helping them lift the 2018/19 Premiership title.
Should his form with Werder continue, then he could re-enter the Scotland fold. Burke has 13 caps to his name so far, scoring his only goal in Steve Clarke’s first match in charge. He netted a late winner as the Scots came from behind to beat Cyprus 2-1 in September 2019.
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