Attacking all-rounder Sheraldo Becker is leaving 1. FC Union Berlin’s Bundesliga team to joins the Spanish first division club Real Sociedad. Berlin's reigning professional footballer of the season thus ends his chapter in Berlin after 140 competitive games.

Building up to his best

The 28 year old Suriname international moved to Union from the Dutch side ADO Den Haag in the summer of 2019 following their promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time, but the lightning quick right-footer struggled initially to find his feet, and he was also faced constant injury set-backs.

From the 2021/22 season onwards, however, things were set to change as Becker found his place in top-flight football, and as Union played in European competition for the first time in the club's history. His six goals and nine assists were just the precursor to what fans and the club were to see in his final full season.

Sheraldo was involved in every single one of head coach Urs Fischer's side’s 48 competitive matches in the next season, scoring twelve goals and setting up a further ten for his colleagues. The start of that 2022-23 season will certainly remain unforgettable, he scored six times in the first seven matches, provided three assists and with it secured the "Player of the Month" award in August 2022, the first and only player so far to have done so while at Union.

His two goals in the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League were just as memorable and significant. The brace to give Union a 2-0 lead against SC Braga in the second game of the group stage were not only his own first goals in Europe’s premier club competition, but also Union’s.

After Christopher Trimmel and Jakob Busk, Sheraldo Becker was Union’s third longest-serving player, and the third captain. But now the story of Sheraldo Becker at 1. FC Union Berlin comes to an end after 140 games, 9158 minutes played, 24 goals and 26 assists.

The views on the move

"I will be forever grateful to Union,” said a smiling, if reflective Becker. “This is where I became who I am today. Together, we've achieved a lot in four and a half years that nobody would have thought we could. I will always be proud of that. Now it's time for me to move on, but the club and the people will always have a place in my heart."

Meanwhile, Union’s director of men’s professional football, Oliver Ruhnert, had this to say on the move. "Sheraldo has had a great journey through the Bundesliga and Europe with us and has played a big part in the successes of recent years. His move to Spain is now a new challenge for him. We are delighted to have had such a great time together and wish him all the best in San Sebastián."