U19 starlet Sam signs Hamburg deal

Sidney Sam has received a boost as he prepares to represent Germany in the UEFA European Under-19 Championship after being given his first professional contract at Hamburger SV.

Next step
The 19-year-old striker has risen up the ranks at Hamburg, playing for their reserves in the third division last season, and his deal runs until summer 2010. Hamburg sporting director Dietmar Beiersdorfer explained: "Sidney has been with us since his days in the junior teams. He has performed extremely well in the reserves and with the national team. We will give him time to develop and hope he will make the next step." Sam and his U19 colleagues compete in Austria from 16 July, while Hamburg will play in the UEFA Intertoto Cup third round in the last two weekends of this month against FC Dacia Chisinau or FC St. Gallen.