Werder Bremen's managing director steps down

Werder Bremen's managing director Juergen Born has stepped down in the wake of a corruption probe in Peru.

Born took a leave of absence one week ago and announced his decision to resign Friday. The club said he was in South America.

According to reports in the Peruvian media, the Werder boss allegedly personally pocketed $50,000 (euro38,750) from the transfer of Roberto Silva to Werder Bremen in 2001. Born has denied any wrongdoing.

In a statement posted on the club's Web site, Born said he was stepping down immediately because he had "again become the subject of reports in connection with financial transactions."

"I can, however, assure you that I never drew any illegal financial benefits at the cost of Werder Bremen. Since providing proof needs some time, I want to spare Werder unnecessary burden," said Born, a former banker with a long career in South America.

Peruvian striker Claudio Pizarro, who is on loan to Werder from Chelsea, also has been implicated in the fraud investigation targeting his agent Carlos Delgado. Pizarro allegedly has a stake in Delgado's company Image.

Earlier this week, Werder said it would wait until the affair is cleared up before buying out Pizarro's contract from Chelsea. Pizarro previously played for Werder, before moving to Bayern Munich and eventually to Chelsea.