In 2005, Metzelder left Dortmund and joined VfR Aalen in the Regionalliga Süd (then third division). Two years later he stayed in the category, being instrumental in Football Club Ingolstadt 04"s promotion to the second level in his first season. He left in July 2014 at the age of 32, after no competitive appearances whatsoever in his last two years.
However, he appeared very rarely for the first team, amassing only nine Bundesliga appearances – all in 2003-2004 – and adding two minutes in a 2–1 away win against FK Austria Wien for the Union of European Football Associations Cup. Metzelder"s older brother, Christoph, is also a football player (and a centre back), and both played for Borussia Dortmund, with his sibling also playing three years at Real Madrid and representing Germany on about 50 occasions, helping it finish second at the 2002 Fédération internationale de football association World Cup.
