Shinji Kagawa has completed his return to Borussia Dortmund! The Japanese international, who previously played for Dortmund from 2010 to 2012, signed a four-year contract until 30 June 2018 with the eight-time German champions on Sunday after his previous club Manchester United gave permission for the transfer the evening before.

"The possibility of signing Shinji Kagawa from Manchester United only arose for the first time in the last few days", said Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc, adding "Naturally we decided to add his enormous quality to our squad once again".

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Sportdirektor Zorc, Neuzugang Kagawa

Kagawa's move was completed before the German Football League's transfer deadline expires on Monday and he will be eligible to play in Dortmund's next Bundesliga match against SC Freiburg on 13 September in the Signal Iduna Park.
Shinji Kagawa originally signed for BVB in summer 2010 for a nominal compensation fee from Cerezo Osaka and promptly scored two goals on his debut against Qarabagh Agdam in the UEFA Europa League. In the following two seasons, he made 49 Bundesliga appearances, scoring 21 goals, despite being sidelined for six months with a broken foot. The tricky midfielder was a cornerstone of the side that won the German title in 2011 and 2012 and played a major role in the victorious German Cup final in 2012. Kagawa scored the opening goal in a 5-2 win over Bayern München in Berlin.

In summer 2012, Kagawa moved to Manchester United for personal reasons, as the English Premier League (currently) enjoys a higher standing in  Japanese public perception than the German Bundesliga. "I will always carry this club, its fantastic fans and the whole city in my heart and will always look for BVB's results", he said upon leaving back then.

After two years in Manchester and 38 appearances and 6 goals in the Premier League, Shinji Kagawa is returning to Dortmund and is preparing to write a new chapter with the Schwarzgelben. "The day I left, I said in an interview that the chapter Borussia Dortmund was not closed in my life. I wanted to fulfill my dream of playing in the Premier League. Now I am simply delighted to be back in Dortmund with this fantastic team and set-up and these unique fans. BVB is like a family and I am proud that they did not forget me and that I can belong to it once more", said Kagawa.