Cologne signs veteran Claudio Pizarro in bid to boost attack
COLOGNE, Germany (AP) Cologne has signed veteran Peruvian striker Claudio Pizarro in a bid to boost its attacking threat.
The Bundesliga side has struggled for goals since French striker Anthony Modeste left in a big-money move to Chinese side Tianjin Quanjian. The 38-year-old Pizarro signed a deal until the end of the season, the Bundesliga side said.
''Pizarro is a clinical striker in front of goal with a personality that will be good for our team,'' Cologne coach Peter Stoeger said.
Cologne is bottom of the Bundesliga with just one goal scored in six rounds. Modeste got 25 goals for the club last season. His replacement, Jhon Cordoba, is yet to score, while Marcel Risse is injured and Latvian striker Artjoms Rudnevs ended his career Friday for what the club called personal reasons.
''When you have a problem in attack, you don't need to be a sorcerer to come up with Pizarro,'' Cologne sporting director Joerg Schmadtke said.
Pizarro, who was without a club since leaving Werder Bremen at the end of last season, will be 39 on Tuesday.
Pizarro scored only one Bundesliga goal in his final season in his third stint at Bremen, but altogether he has 191 goals in 430 league games between Bremen and Bayern Munich, where he spent two stints. He also played one season in the Premier League for Chelsea with two goals in 21 league games.
Pizarro also has 18 goals in 79 appearances for Peru.
