1. FC Nürnberg have announced that they have agreed to sign goalkeeper Fabian Bredlow from Hallescher FC in the summer.

He will join Der Club in the summer after the expiration of his contract with the 3. Liga club, and will serve as a replacement for Raphael Schäfer, who is expected to retire.

Although not confirmed by the club, it has been reported he has signed a four-year deal.

Established at Halle after passing through Red Bull system

Bredlow started his career with the youth teams of FC Hertha 03 Zehlendorf in his native Berlin, before being signed by RB Leipzig in 2012.

He never played for the now-Bundesliga side, and was loaned out to sister club Red Bull Salzburg in the 2014-15, who gave him his first experience of senior football with their second team, FC Liefering, who play in the second-tier Erste Liga.

Having made 29 appearances in Austria, he then signed for Halle in the summer of 2015. He quickly established himself as the number one, missing just one league match since his debut. He has emerged as one of the best keepers in the league, and has kept ten clean sheets in his 23 appearances so far this season.

The 21-year-old also made five appearances for the German under-20 side, most recently against Switzerland last March, with the 1-1 draw the only game he had conceded a goal in.

Bredlow keen to continue development

Halle had hoped to extend his contract, which was due to expire in the summer, however they confirmed last week that they had been unable to come to an agreement and he would join a new club in the summer, now known to be Nürnberg.

Bredlow admitted that it had been “brutally hard” to tell them of his decision to leave, but that he intended to “concentrate fully” on his commitment to the club, who are fourth in the 3. Liga and very much in the race for promotion, for the rest of the season.

Looking ahead though, he also said that he was “looking forward” to the challenge of joining his new club, and that he was hoping to “take the next step” in his development there, where he will compete with Thorsten Kirschbaum for the goalkeeping gloves.

Head of sport at Nürnberg, Andreas Bornemann, described Bredlow as “a well-trained goalkeeper” and has praised the development he has made at Halle. “He quickly found his way to the top position in the third division and consistently convinced with his good performances,” he said.

Quotes via Hallescher FC and 1. FC Nürnberg.