Teenage sensation Alou Kuol will leave Central Coast and join Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart on a four-year deal at the end of the A-League season.
The 19-year-old has had a breakthrough campaign for the table-topping Mariners, scoring seven goals in 16 games.
Kuol had been linked to Stuttgart for several weeks but on Friday the German team confirmed they had signed him just over a year after his senior debut against Western United at the start of March 2020.
"Alou Kuol has attracted attention as one of the top rookies in the Australian A-League and impressed us in face-to-face conversations with his personality and ambition," Stuttgart sporting director Sven Mislintat said.
The Germans are expected to start Kuol's European journey in their under-21 program before any opportunity at senior level.
Mariners head of football Ken Schembri said the club was very proud of the former Goulburn Valley junior's development at Gosford.
"We believe that we have a number of youngsters coming through our academy pipeline now who are capable of achieving great things in the future," Schembri said.
Kuol and the Mariners will be out to maintain the club's standing at the top of the A-League when they face Western United in Launceston on Saturday.
Australian Associated Press
