Confirmed: Darmstadt pick up Holtmann on loan
German football's "Filipino Typhoon" is officially back in the German Bundesliga.
Gerrit Holtmann's rumored transfer to relegation-threatened Bundesliga side SV Darmstadt 98 has been made official. The Bremen native's parent club of VfL Bochum officially cancelled the 28-year-old's current loan arrangement with Turkish side Antalyaspor in order to loan him back out to the Lilies on a six-month arrangement. Holtmann logged only 262 minutes in eight appearances in the Süper Lig.
As a long-time German footballing professional, Holtmann's CV with Bochum, Eintracht Braunschweig, FSV Mainz 05, and SC Paderborn accords him impressive statistics. The twice-capped Filipino international has scored nine goals in 102 Bundesliga appearances as well as eight goals in the second division. Holtmann's pace and dribbling skills leave him highly regarded in German footballing circles.
His unforgettable tally for Bochum against former club Mainz on match-day two of the 2021/22 campaign was later selected by German public broadcaster ARD as the "2021 Goal-of-the-Year". Holtmann's new last-placed Bundesliga side will be hoping that he - just like new loanee Julian Justvan did against regional rivals Frankfurt yesterday - can make an immediate impact.
"We are delighted that we were able to convince Gerrit to move to Darmstadt," SV trainer Torsten Lieberknecht noted in a club statement, "With him, we are adding a fast, dynamic team player to the team who is at home on the left flank. I know him from my time with Braunschweig. He knows what it takes to stay in the top flight."
"I was immediately impressed by the talks with the people in charge and they gave me a good feeling," the player himself added, "Of course I'm delighted to be able to work with Torsten Lieberknecht again, who was one of the ones who discovered me and helped me tremendously in my development in my first years as a professional. I can hardly wait to get started. We have a lot planned for the next few months."