AMSTERDAM – Second Bundesliga cellar-dwellers Erzgebirge Aue finally got their man on Monday, snaring attacker Bobby Wood in a transfer from 1860 Munich and signing him to a contract that runs through the 2016-17 season.
The 22-year-old US international escapes the Allianz Arena doghouse to join a side desperate for offense. Wood was one of two Aue captures on the day, as the club presented on-loan defender Román Golobart with him.
"Our goal was to strengthen our team before the resumption of matches and be ready for the fight against relegation," Aue club president Helge Leonhardt told the club website. "Now it's up to our entire team to take on this fight and work together to achieve our goal."
Wood had been with the US national team in Southern California after starting the Jan. 28 friendly against Chile at forward. US Soccer announced via Twitter on Monday that he will not be available for Sunday's friendly against Panama at StubHub Center (4 pm ET, ESPN, UniMas, UDN).
Erzgebirge Aue currently stand four points shy of the last safety spot, which is occupied by 1860. Only two teams in the league have scored fewer goals than Aue's 16 in 19 games.
Wood could get his first chance to impress the new fans when the Violas get back to work by hosting RB Leipzig on Friday night. When he appears, the Hawaii native will become the first American to play for Aue.
