Terrence Boyd has left 3. Liga club Hallescher FC after two and a half seasons, and heads west to division rivals FC Kaiserslautern as they make a push for promotion to the 2. Bundesliga.
The Bremen-born forward joins a team that is currently in second place in the division, and leading a five-team pack that are separated by three points and all having eyes upon the promotion spots.
The Red Devils confirmed the move on Saturday morning, with the team’s managing director Thomas Hengen elaborating on their excitement at acquiring the 30 year-old.
“With Terrence we got the type of player who gives our offensive game more options,” he explained. “When the possibility of a transfer opened up here and it became clear that a personality like Terrence Boyd, who also fits well into our squad in terms of character, was on the market, we had to look into it.”
Details about the length of Boyd’s contract were not given, however rumors had suggested that Kaiserslautern paid a fee in the neighborhood of €300,000 – a hefty amount for the 3. Liga – to secure the player’s services.
Kaiserslautern has attained their current second-place standing through a stingy defense that has only allowed 13 goals through 22 games. This has, at times, covered for a little-more-than-sufficient attack that has only scored 34 themselves, a respectable tick, but one that could hurt them against their direct competitors, most of whom have an advantage in this column.
This is largely due to their misfiring strike corps, who have accounted for a measly total of seven goals, five of which have come from 25 year-old Daniel Hanslik. Otherwise, the vast majority of the team’s scoring has originated from the midfield.
Head coach Marco Antwerpen has typically run some variation of a 3-5-2 formation for the last few months, although he has occasionally opted for a back-four and lone striker heading the attack in limited situations. This will put Boyd in line to be the immediate starter alongside Hanslik in most cases.
The former American international had several unsettled years following a severe knee injury in late-2014 during his first season at RB Leipzig. A short stopover in Toronto in MLS during early-2019 directly preceded an extended successful spell in Halle, where he scored 32 league goals in a total of 68 games, as the main scoring option on a team that finished ninth and 15th in his two full seasons.
Boyd did not suit up with his new team on Saturday as they beat Viktoria Berlin by a 2-0 score, however was already in training the following day, and should be on the field for their next game on Saturday, when they host his former team in the Fritz-Walter-Stadion.
