Hamburg have signed defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos on a six-month loan from Bayer Leverkusen after his intended season-long stay at RB Leipzig was cut short.
Papadopoulos, 24, had joined Leipzig on loan in the summer but the agreement was cut short after he made just one 27-minute appearance for the title challengers in the first half of the season.
The Greece international failed to force his way into coach Ralph Hassenhuttl's plans before having to undergo knee surgery in November, but he will now look to reignite his career with relegation-battling Hamburg.
Fix! Kyriakos #Papadopoulos wechselt auf Leihbasis bis zum Sommer an die Elbe: https://t.co/NHMAlaGUR1 #nurderHSV pic.twitter.com/t9FaGwl0iD
- Hamburger SV (@HSV) January 16, 2017
"We get a versatile defensive specialist with a huge fighting spirit," HSV sporting director Jens Todt said on the club's official website.
Papadopoulos, who has struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, said: "HSV are a big club. I hope I can help the club and the team achieve their goals. I am fit and I am looking forward to join my teammates in training on Tuesday."
Former Schalke defender Papadopoulos, who made a permanent switch to Leverkusen in 2015 after a loan spell at the BayArena, will wear the No. 9 shirt at Hamburg.
HSV are currently in the relegation playoff spot in the Bundesliga table ahead of the second half of the season.