“The signing of Éder will provide us with more flexibility, international experience and a physical presence, which will help our squad and give our coach more options,” said Peter Knäbel, board member for sport.
Head coach Thomas Reis added: “We are gaining a very robust defensive midfielder who is good at winning challenges and is defined by his physicality. I’m convinced that his style of play will help ease the pressure on our defence and be of benefit to us.”
“I’m very happy that the transfer has gone through now and can’t wait to get to know my teammates. We have a tough challenge ahead of us still and I will do everything to help us stay up,” Balanta said about his move to Gelsenkirchen.
As a youth player, the Colombia international moved to River Plate in Argentina and came through the first team there. After that, he played for FC Basel in Switzerland, before moving to Club Brugge in 2019. Balanta has made nine appearances for the Colombia national team. This current season, he has played nine times in the Belgian Pro league as well as four times in the UEFA Champions League.