Şahin leaves Liverpool to make Dortmund return

Nuri Şahin has rejoined German champions Borussia Dortmund on loan from Real Madrid CF for the next 18 months.

The 24-year-old Turkish international arrives having cut short his season-long loan spell at Liverpool FC. Instead, Şahin will spend the remainder of this campaign and the whole of 2013/14 back at Dortmund, where he previously made 135 Bundesliga appearances.

"I only slept three or four hours last night, I wanted to get home immediately," said Şahin, who left for Real Madrid in summer 2011. "Dortmund is my home and I am incredibly happy to be back. There is more competition now, but I am optimistic I can add something to this team,"  The midfielder, the youngest player in Bundesliga history when debuting for Dortmund aged 16 in 2005/06, was an instrumental figure in the club's 2010/11 title triumph.

However, the playmaker featured in only ten matches for Madrid, with four of those coming in the UEFA Champions League, before moving to England in August. At Liverpool, he was limited to seven top-flight appearances and four in the UEFA Europa League. Nonetheless, Dortmund feel they are restoring a key player to their ranks. "Everyone knows Nuri, his strengths don't need explaining. He has outstanding potential and his character fits perfectly at Dortmund," sporting director Michael Zorc said.

Zorc also announced that left-back Marcel Schmelzer has extended his contract until 2017. The 24-year-old played every minute of Dortmund's UEFA Champions League group stage campaign, scoring the winner against Madrid on matchday three. Dortmund topped Group D and face FC Shakhtar Donetsk in the round of 16, travelling to Ukraine on 13 February before the decider at the BVB Stadion Dortmund on 5 March.