Report: Kaiserslautern interested in Bremen's Rapp
Palatinate regional newspaper "Die Rheinpfalz" reports that 1. FC Kaiserslautern are interested in plucking 2. Bundesliga veteran Nicolai Rapp from SV Werder Bremen in the coming transfer window.
Just a few days after the underused Benjamin Goller found a new home with a 2. Bundesliga club, there are reports that SV Werder Bremen may be preparing to offload another actor not actively utilized by head-coach Ole Werner in the top flight. Central midfielder/center back Nicolai Rapp may be headed back down to the second division.
The 25-year-old former German youth international made 28 appearances for the Hanseaten during their promotion campaign last season, yet has only been used seven times off the bench for Werder in the top flight this year. Rapp was also deemed not useful by 1. FC Union Berlin during their first year in the Bundesliga during the 2019/20 campaign.
In total, Rapp has racked up 133 2. Bundesliga appearances for Werder, Union, SV Darmstadt 98, and Erzgebirge Aue in his career. Regional newspaper "Die Rheinpfalz" reports that second tier 1. FC Kaiserslautern wish to pick him up during the coming January transfer window. FCK trainer Dirk Schuster has labelled Rapp "a very interesting player".
SV Werder Bremen scouting manager Clemens Fritz, reached for comment about a potential move for Rapp by the club's "Deichstube" fan site, denied that there were any plans in place. Selling the player - whom maintains an estimated €800,000 market value in the latest transfermarkt listings - would still make a great deal of sense.
Rapp joined Bremen for a €200,000 transfer fee from Union in the summer of 2021. He netted two goals and chipped in two assists for the SV last season and was already linked with a move to Lautern this past summer.
It has not yet been disclosed how much money Bremen pocketed from the Goller transfer, but it's reasonable to assume that Goller and Rapp together could fetch the club over €1 million.