London: Champions League finalists Chelsea have agreed to sign Germany midfielder Marko Marin from Werder Bremen at the end of the season when the summer transfer window opens.
The west London club said on Saturday that they have agreed to a fee for the 23-year-old playmaker and that Marin has agreed to personal terms. However, Chelsea did not say how much they would pay for the player who was linked with a move to Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur in January. Bremen paid Bundesliga rivals Borussia Moenchengladbach about €8 million ($10.6 million) for him in 2009.
Bremen general manager Klaus Allofs confirmed the move to Sky television. "I can confirm that he will be a Chelsea player next year. We finalized the last details during the course of the day," Allofs said on Saturday.
"We have always said that we would be open to talk if any of our players receives a good offer which was also interesting for Werder," he later told BBC. "In the coming weeks, we will deal with the last formalities. We wish Marko all the best for this new challenge."
German media widely reported that Marin has agreed to a five-year contract.
Marin was born in the former Yugoslavia in 1989 but moved to Germany with his family at an early age and has played 16 times for Germany, including two substitute appearances at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
He was an Eintracht Frankfurt youth player before switching to Moenchengladbach at 16. He made his Bundesliga debut in 2007.
Marin, who can play as either a central or wide man, has made 87 Bundesliga appearances for Bremen, scoring 8 goals, and has 12 goals in a total 124 Bundesliga appearances. He was a member of the Bremen side that lost in the 2010 German Cup final to Bayern Munich.
"I had a very nice time at Werder with many great guys and good memories, but of course I'm looking forward to the Premier League with such an established club," Marin said.
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