Tag: Bayern Munich

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DAVID ALABA UNHAPPY WITH BAYERN CONTRACT RIFT.

David Alaba said Monday he was “hurt and disappointed” after learning that Bayern Munich had withdrawn a proposed contract extension following months of wrangling over a new deal. “I was surprised, I learned about it through the press. It was obviously a very odd situation,” Alaba said at a news conference ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League game away to Salzburg. Bayern president Herbert Hainer told German television on Sunday that Alaba’s agent Pini Zahavi had found the club’s most recent offer “unsatisfactory”.

As a result, he said “the club decided to finish the offer and to take it off the table – that means there is no longer any offer.”

Alaba, whose deal runs out in June 2021, reaffirmed his commitment to Bayern on Monday, insisting he had not held talks with any other clubs.

“I’m a player who really loves to play for Bayern Munich, I’m still very happy to be part of this team,” he said.

Reports claim the Austria international is seeking an extension worth more than 20 million euros annually ($23 million) to bring him in line with the club’s highest-paid players.

Honorary Bayern president Uli Hoeness branded Alaba’s agent Pini Zahavi a ‘money-greedy piranha’ amid the acrimonious negotiations.

However Alaba, whose current contract is worth around 10 million euros per season, disputes the numbers being discussed and said he was “hurt and disappointed” that nobody at the club has “denied these allegations”.

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LEWANDOWSKI HIT HATRICK AS BAYERN PUTS UNREPLIED FIVE PAST FRANKFURT.

Incredible Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick, taking his tally to 10 goals in five Bundesliga games, as the defending champions thumped hapless Eintracht Frankfurt 5-0 on Saturday.

The prolific Poland forward fired Bayern in front after 10 minutes when he was given too much space by the Eintracht defence and headed the second from a corner before the half hour.

He completed his hat-trick in the 61th minute from Douglas Costa’s pass before substitutes Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala added two more goals, with Sane’s in particular a sensational strike.

Bayern moved into second place with 12 points from five games, one behind RB Leipzig who beat Hertha Berlin 2-1. Eintracht, unbeaten in their first four games, have eight points.

The Bundesliga champions’ victory was marred by an injury to Alphonso Davies, who limped off the pitch with an ankle injury just three minutes into the match.

Eintracht were unbeaten in their opening four games but that record never looked likely to remain intact after they gave Lewandowski far too much room and he scored almost nonchalantly in the 10th minute.

Lewandowski outjumped his marker to head the second from a corner in the 28th minute and could have completed his hat-trick before half time but sent one effort wide from Leon Goretzka’s pass and then saw another blocked by goalkeeper Kevin Trapp

He made no mistake, however, just after the hour mark, holding off two defenders to slot his effort past Trapp after Douglas Costa threaded the ball to him.

Sane’s fourth in the 74th minute was reminiscent of former Bayern winger Arjen Robben as he raced down the touchline, cut inside and sent a dipping left-foot shot past a stranded Trapp.

Musiala capped the performance by adding the fifth in the 90th minute after a series of rebounds in the penalty area.

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BAYERN MUNICH CONFIRM THE SIGNING OF ERIC MAXIM CHOUPO-MOTING FROM PSG

Bayern Munich have confirmed the signing of former Stoke and Paris Saint-Germain striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting on a short-term contract until the summer of 2021.

Choupo-Moting has been without a club since leaving PSG in August, with his last appearance actually the 2020 Champions League against Bayern in Lisbon.

The 31-year-old Cameroon international was born in Germany and started his career with Hamburg, before later playing for Nurnberg, Mainz and Schalke.

Following a disappointing season with Stoke in 2017/18 that ended in relegation, Choupo-Moting’s switch to PSG soon afterwards was surprising enough. With only nine goals in 51 appearances under his belt, a move to Bayern now comes as an even greater shock.

But the player himself is revelling in the opportunity to play for another huge club.

“It’s a great feeling to come back to the Bundesliga – and then to the biggest club in Germany,” he told his new club’s official website.

“Who wouldn’t want to play for FC Bayern? It’s an honor to play for this club. At FC Bayern, the aim is always to win everything, and I am highly motivated to achieve these goals.”

Sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic added, “I am happy that we were able to sign Eric. He gives our squad a depth on the offensive, especially in the centre, which we will need.

“Eric gained international experience at Paris Saint-Germain, he knows the Bundesliga, Eric is coming on a free transfer. It all fits together very well.”

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INTER MILAN REJECTS FIRST BAYERN BID FOR IVAN PERISIC.

According to an Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, Bayern Munich’s first official bid to Inter Milan for veteran winger Ivan Perišić has been rejected.

Romano indicated that Bayern Munich submitted a bid of €12 million for Perisic, while Inter is insisting on €15 million.

With only a €3 million difference between the sides, it looks like there could be a compromise in sight if talks continue.

As it is, Bayern Munich manager Hansi Flick would like to bring back Perišić, despite already adding Leroy Sané to the team’s group of wingers. Sane, Serge Gnabry, and Kingsley Coman represent the team’s first three options, but Perišić could, again, prove to be invaluable as a veteran depth piece, who can provide stable and consistent play when called upon.

Regardless, Flick’s organizational clout with personnel decisions will be tested again with this move. For Bayern Munich, the club’s brass might want to consider this investment closely.

Each of the club’s current first-team wingers has a bit of a sketchy injury history and there is no reason to think that Perišić will not have an important role to play despite the talent ahead of him on the depth chart.

In addition, this might be a relatively inexpensive price to pay to give a deserving coach what he wants. Flick’s Champions League-winning performance alone should merit him the opportunity to have more of a say in the roster composition than he has had thus far.

Perišić is 31-years-old and had eight goals and 10 assists in 35 games across all competitions for Bayern Munich during the 2019/2020 campaign.

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BOATENG WON’T SAY NO TO PREMIER LEAGUE MOVE

Bayern Munich defender, Jerome Boatenf has said he will not mind a move to the English premier league.

The German has suffered a consistent injury setback in recent times despite being a key player for the Bundesliga giants.

“There were hard times,” Jérôme Boateng says as his mind drifts back to Bayern Munich’s wobbles at the start of the season. “It’s like being a child. As a child if I had no confidence, if you don’t get trust from your friends, then you lose the joy of the game. That’s what happens now, even when I’m older.”

Boateng, one of the finest defenders of his generation, could feel the spark ebbing away. Bayern were on the slide under Niko Kovac, a coach struggling to connect with a champion squad, and time finally appeared to have caught up with the old guard. Thomas Müller and Manuel Neuer were under pressure and Boateng, aware that people were starting to view him as a fading force, wondered whether a change of scenery was required.

“There were thoughts at some stage,” he says. “Do I need to change now? I won’t play for ever and I want to enjoy football. I knew I still trained good and in my opinion not everybody has to have the same opinion, I deserved a chance to play and to show that I can play at a high level. At some point if you see it’s not working between the sides then you have to make a clean cut. A nice cut, not a dirty cut.”

Yet Bayern, languishing in seventh place in the Bundesliga at one stage, have come roaring back since replacing Kovac with Hansi Flick in December. They have won their eighth successive title, thumped Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup final and are one of the favourites to win the Champions League before the second leg of their last-16 tie against Chelsea at the Allianz Arena on Saturday night.

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BAYERN BOSS CONFIRMS THIAGO’S DESIRES TO LEAVE

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has confirmed that Thiago Alcantara has told the club he wants to leave this summer.

Reports in recent weeks have claimed Thiago wants to leave Germany this summer with Liverpool his preferred destination.

There was even a suggestion the Reds had already agreed personal terms with the 29-year-old, who has now entered the final 12 months of his contract at Bayern.

And Rummenigge has now confirmed that the Spanish star has made Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic aware of his desire to undertake a new challenge this summer.

However, and contrary to some reports, Rummenigge has also revealed that Liverpool, or anyone club for that matter, have not approached the German giants over a move for the midfielder.

“Hasan had talks with Thiago. They were always very positive, but he told Hasan some time ago that he wants to do something new to finish his career,” he told the German media on Thursday.

“So far no club has contacted us. We don’t know if he’s settled things with a new club. Hasan is in talks with David and his advisor.

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Neuer Filmed singing controversial song

The captain of Bayern Munich and Germany’s national football team has been filmed singing a controversial song while on holiday in Croatia.

In the video, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is seen with a group of men at a beach singing Lijepa li si (You are beautiful).

It references an area of Bosnia-Herzegovina claimed by Croatian nationalists in the 1990s.

The BBC has reached out to Bayern Munich for comment.

Neuer is currently on holiday in Croatia with his goalkeeping coach Toni Tapalovic. Bayern Munich won an eighth consecutive league title last month, weeks after Neuer extended his contract with the team until 2023.

Mr Tapalovic was born in Germany but is of Croatian descent, and his brother Filip Tapalovic appeared three times for Croatia’s national side.

It is not known if Neuer understood the words of the song. The keeper’s personal manager told Bild newspaper that he does not speak Croatian.

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LIVERPOOL GETS THIAGO BOOST AS BAYERN BEGINS SEARCH FOR THE SPANISH REPLACEMENT

Bayern Munich have reportedly identified two potential replacements for Liverpool transfer target Thiago Alcantara. The Reds are keen on signing Thiago this summer and the player has reportedly already agreed personal terms to link up with Jurgen Klopp at Anfield.

Thiago was poised to sign a new contract with Bayern before deciding on a U-turn following interest from Premier League champions Liverpool. Le 10 Sport claim Bayern are preparing for the potential departure of several midfielders, with Javi Martinez and Corentin Tolisso also tipped to leave the club. Bayern announced the signing of Tanguy Kouassi, but the former Paris Saint-Germain is still only a raw talent at 18 years old.

As a result, the German giants are now eager to raid two Premier League clubs for midfielders. Chelsea’s Tiemoue Bakayoko and Tottenham’s Tanguy Ndombele are attracting Bayern’s attention.

Bakayoko has struggled at Chelsea since a big-money move from Monaco in 2017 and has spent most of his time as a Blue out on loan. The Frenchman was hoping to join PSG or AC Milan and Chelsea are ready to listen to offers. Chelsea want around £31million for Bakayoko, but any deal for Ndombele is likely to be far more complicated.

Ndombele is Tottenham’s record signing and only joined Spurs last summer from Lyon in a £53.8m deal.

Though his debut season at Tottenham has not been perfect, the 23-year-old is still adapting to the Premier League and Jose Mourinho’s style of management. Bayern will be tempted to try and agree a loan deal with Tottenham, similar to the ones they struck with Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho and Real Madrid for James Rodriguez.

However, Tottenham will be wary by the fact Bayern decided against buying either midfielder when their loan deals expired. Bayern’s pursuit of midfielders, however, will be a boost for Liverpool and Thiago. Liverpool are not expected to do any major transfer business this summer and are hopeful of negotiating a knockdown price for the Brazilian star.

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“I LIKE HIM”: KLOPP REACTS TO TRANSFER LINKS WITH BAYERN’S THIAGO ALCANTARA

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has expressed his likeness for Bayern Munich’s Thiago Alcantara amidst heavy transfer links to the premier league champions.

After the win over Aston Villa, Klopp claimed that he doesn’t wish to answer transfer related questions. However, he did mention that Thiago is a very good player and he likes the Bayern Munich star.

Klopp said to Liverpool Echo: “Would you be surprised if I don’t give an answer on that, just because I never answer these kinds of questions. Thiago Alcantara is a really good player. Like a lot of other players out there, I like (him) a lot. But that’s all I have to say about that.”

It will be interesting to see if the 29-year-old ends up at Anfield this summer.

Liverpool could use a central midfielder of his quality and it would be a tremendous signing for them. He would add craft, flair and technical ability to their midfield. The Reds have been missing that extra bit of creativity from the middle since Philippe Coutinho’s departure.

Recent reports state that Thiago could cost around €35m. The player wants a new challenge now and a move to Anfield would be ideal for him as well.

The Reds are one of the best clubs in the world right now and they will be challenging for the Premier League and the Champions League next season. Thiago could certainly help them achieve those goals.

The only downside of the move is that Thiago is injury prone and his availability could be an issue over the course of the season. If he can stay fit, he could prove to be a world-class signing for Liverpool.

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Robert Lewandowski brace fires Bayern Munich to DFB-Pokal glory

Robert Lewandowski struck twice as Bayern Munich completed a successive domestic double with a 4-2 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup final.

A David Alaba free-kick and Serge Gnabry strike put Bayern on course for victory in Berlin before Lewandowski took his tally for the season to 50 with a third just before the hour.

Sven Bender gave Leverkusen some hope but Lewandowski’s second in the 89th minute put the result beyond doubt, although Kai Havertz added a penalty in stoppage time.

t was an 11th successive victory for Bayern since German football resumed following the stoppage for the coronavirus outbreak.

They will now hope to go on and make it a treble by winning the Champions League in August. They lead Chelsea 3-0 after the first leg of their last-16 tie.

Juventus took another step towards a ninth consecutive Serie A title as they overpowered Torino 4-1 in the Turin derby.

Paulo Dybala and Juan Cuadrado put Juve 2-0 up inside the opening half-hour and Cristiano Ronaldo made victory safe with a free-kick after Andrea Belotti pulled one back from the penalty spot.

A late Koffi Djidji own goal added gloss to the scoreline on the night veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made a record 648th Serie A appearance.

Lecce’s relegation fears increased as they were beaten 4-2 at mid-table Sassuolo.

Late goals from Jeremie Boga and Mert Mulder won it for Sassuolo after Lecce had twice come from behind with strikes from Fabio Lucioni and Marco Mancosu cancelling out efforts from Francesco Caputo and Domenico Berardi.

In Spain, Valladolid claimed their first win in six LaLiga games as a late goal from Joaquin earned a 1-0 victory over Alaves. Joaquin struck following a set-piece two minutes from time, lifting his side 10 points clear of the relegation zone.

Zouhair Feddal equalised 11 minutes from time as Real Betis grabbed a 1-1 draw at Celta Vigo. Nolito had opened the scoring for the hosts midway through the first half.