A Germany Under-20 forward, Savio Nsereko joined West Ham United from Italian side Brescia Calcio on a four-and-a-half year contract in January 2009.

Born in the Ugandan capital Kampala in July 1989, Savio moved to the German city of Munich with his family when he was just two years old. The talented forward started his career at local club SV 1880 Munich before moving to TSV 1860 Munich at the age of nine.

Savio impressed as a youngster with 1860, catching the eye of then-Brescia technical director Gianluca Nani, who snapped up the teenager in 2005, when he was just 16. Savio was handed his full Serie B debut on the final day of the 2005/06 season by Brescia coach Zdenek Zeman, starting the 4-2 home defeat by Crotone at the Stadio Mario Rigamonti.

It was during the 2008/09 season, that Savio made his breakthrough to become a first-team regular with Brescia, appearing in 17 matches for the former Italian Cup winners. Savio's final appearance for the Lombardy club saw him score twice in a minute in a 4-0 victory over Pisa. His impressive form had caught the attention of a host of the continent's leading clubs, including Juventus, AS Roma and Napoli.

It was West Ham who won the race for Savio's signature, however, with manager Gianfranco Zola predicting bright things in future for the youngster.

On the international scene, Savio was an integral part of a Germany squad that lifted the UEFA European Under-19 Championship trophy in the summer of 2008. The forward was an influential figure in the tournament in the Czech Republic, scoring in the 3-1 group stage win over Bulgaria as the Germans won all five of their matches. Savio was named as the star man by the UEFA technical observer.

He made his debut for the Germany Under-20 side in the 4-2 win over Austria in Gutersloh in September 2008. The left-sided youngster, who is happy operating on either flank or in a more advanced forward role, is hoping to be involved in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Egypt later in 2009.

After making his West Ham debut as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 Barclays Premier League victory over Hull City at the Boleyn Ground on 28 January 2009, Savio went on to make eleven league and cup appearances at the tail-end of the 2008/09 campaign.