The retirement of Bayern Munich’s magic duo of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery left a big hole in the club’s squad. Bayern Munich had to act fast and find the suitable replacement and their main solution looks to be Leroy Sane. According to Fabrizio Romano, Bayern are confident of sealing the deal.
Bayern Munich Winger Search For a New Winger
The End of the ‘Robbery’ Era
In December, Robben and Ribery announced that they will leave the German giants after another successful season with the club. The 35 and 36-year-old wingers had brilliant careers, winning trophies including many Bundesliga titles, the Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup.
Callum Hudson-Odoi
Now that the ‘Robbery’ era has ended, Bayern Munich are in a difficult position. Bayern’s first main target was Chelsea youngster Callum Hudson-Odoi. Despite the 18 years old’s wish to join the German club Chelsea rejected the first official bid worth less than £15 million. Another higher bid followed, but Chelsea dismissed it too. The German champions’ last, £35 million approach for the 18-year-old was again unsuccessful.
Bayern Munich reportedly renewed transfer talks with the young English winger during the summer transfer window. Hudson-Odoi was unsure of his future but was convinced to
agree to a five-year contract with the London Blues.
Defensive Trouble
About a week before the official start of the Bundesliga summer transfer window another deal was a fact. Borussia Dortmund reached an agreement to sign Mats Hummels, making a new centre-back Bayern’s newest concern. The German champions signed Frenchmen Lucas Hernandez and Benjamin Pavard, adding great talent to the team’s defensive line.
Promising Signing
Hamburger SV starlet Jann-Fiete Arp also joined the German club for €3 million. The young German offers depth as a striker as well as a winger. Despite his and Alphonso Davies’s ability, Munich continued their search for a new experienced winger.
Ante Rebic and Nicolas Pepe
Bayern Munich were reportedly interested in Ante Rebic and Nicolas Pepe. Ante Rebic is part of the impressive Frankfurt squad, that surprisingly reached the semi-final in the last Europa League. On the other hand, Nicolas Pepe was one of the dream signings for many clubs after he led his team Lille to the second place in Ligue 1. The Frenchman recently signed a deal with Arsenal worth £73 million.
Timo Werner
An attacker that checks all the requirements for Bayern Munich is Timo Werner. He is young, experienced and could be a long-term solution at the Allianz Arena. The player himself is interested in joining the German Reds. He hasn’t yet renewed his contract with RB Leipzig, ending in June 2020. This has put Leipzig in a difficult position as the club has no plans to lose their key player on a free transfer. Timo Werner’s move to Bayern is still very much possible, especially in case the club fails to sign Leroy Sane.
The Sane Saga
Leroy Sane is undoubtedly the most wanted player at Allianz Arena this summer. The 23-year-old German signed a contract with Manchester City in 2016 for £45 million. Despite showing incredible talent Sane was often benched, partially due to the great ongoing form of Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling and the German’s attitude in training. Leroy Sane won the Men’s PFA Young Player of the Year in 2018 and a move to Bayern Munich would guarantee him regular football.
Bayern’s first bid for Sane was reportedly worth not more than £80 million pounds, which City found unacceptable.
After countless rumours about Sane’s future, the official Bayern Munich Twitter account released a statement saying Sane has not joined the club, quashing any fake news. This hasn’t stopped football fans from conspiring. In fact, it really does seem that Bayern haven’t given up on their target yet.
Difficulties for City
City fans are of course not happy with the situation. The late decision, or lack of, is making it hard for the club to find a replacement on time. The Bundesliga transfer deadline is on 2 September, but the Premier League one is much earlier on 8 August. Manchester City have already prepared a few options, the most realistic one being Mikel Oyarzabal from Real Sociedad.
Bayern Munich have definitely had a stressful transfer window but an end to the winger saga should be announced soon. Finding the right replacement for Robben and Ribery is extremely difficult, but Niko Kovac and his team will hopefully succeed.
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