Kevin Kuranyi has signed for TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, the club have confirmed.
The striker returns to the Bundesliga after five years with Dynamo Moscow, putting pen to paper on a one-year deal with the German club and joining on a free transfer after his contract expired in Russia.
Kuranyi still ruthless in front of goal
Whilst most strikers see their form deteriorate as their careers near an end, 33-year-old Kuranyi remains a deadly finisher and will be looking to pick up where he left off in Germany with Hoffenheim.
The Brazilian-born forward first established himself as such a top class performer with VfB Stuttgart, the club he joined in 1997 as a 15-year-old, the same year he made the move from his homeland to Germany - which would become his adopted homeland, one he represented for five years before a fall out with national team coach Joachim Low in 2008.
Two goals in seven cameo appearances in the 2001-02 season as a teenager convinced Stuttgart to give Kuranyi more playing time the following year, and he did not disappoint with 22 goals in 43 games. He scored a further 33 goals in 83 games in all competitions before leaving in 2005 to join Schalke 04, just one appearance short of 100 in the league for the Die Roten.
He scored 87 goals for Schalke in five years with the club and won the League Cup with them in his first season, before moving to Russia with Dynamo Moscow in 2010. Kuranyi returns to Germany after netting 50 times in 123 Russian Premier League games.
Striker wants to push himself and add to the team
Speaking to Hoffenheim's official website about the move, Kuranyi revealed that the reason behind his return to the country is because he is "highly motivated to prove [himself] once again in the Bundesliga."
The 33-year-old was drawn to Hoffenheim in particular because of the "many highly talented, young players" at the club and is excited to play with these footballers, citing his "enthusiasm" regarding the move.
The club themselves will be thrilled to have Kuranyi on board too having seen their attacking line take a big blow with the sale of Roberto Firmino to Liverpool this summer. Whilst the players are hardly similar, they both bring goals to their sides, whilst Kuranyi also adds "experience" that the team "will be able to benefit from both on and off the pitch," according to the club's Development Performance Centre Manager, Alexander Rosen.
Rosen also mentioned that the player is "dying" to bring these priceless attributes and "his personality to the development of [Hoffenheim's] young team," which shows that enthusiasm he himself spoke of.