Hasan Salihamidzic and Lothar Matthäus have had their home blessings lopsided for weeks. Because: The former companions at FC Bayern argued in public about the supposed problem areas of their heart club. Now the sports director and the TV expert have settled their disagreement.
Hasan Salihamidzic and Lothar Matthäus have known each other for ages. Between 1998 and 2000 both played together for FC Bayern. Although they went different ways after the end of their careers, the contact was never broken, both professionally and privately.
And so in the past few weeks the hard tone that both Salihamidzic and Matthäus have taken when it comes to their FC Bayern has come as a surprise. It was the German record national player who, in his capacity as “Sky” expert, expressed clear criticism of the defenders Lucas Hernández and Dayot Upamecano, who had been signed by Salihamidzic.
“Brazzo” didn’t leave his statements unanswered for long and whispered that he “didn’t give a damn” about what Matthäus criticized. Shortly afterwards, he added that he “cannot praise FC Bayern where there is nothing to praise”.
Matthew: “We spoke on the phone”
In the run-up to FC Bayern’s Bundesliga game at Eintracht Frankfurt, the two brawlers explained that the dispute has now been resolved. “We spoke on the phone,” revealed Matthäus, adding: “Everyone has their own point of view. He has to do his job, I understand that too. But I also have to do my job and if there’s something to praise, I’ll do it. If there is If there’s something critical, I have to say that too.”
Salihamidzic also didn’t want to talk about the differences any longer: “We appreciate each other, we’ve known each other for so many years. But if I oppose it, he has to put up with it.”
In terms of content, the sports board only partially agreed with Matthäus’ criticism. “Of course it’s clear that we’ll concede too many goals,” said Salihamidzic, who at the same time stated: “It’s not because of the class of the individuals.” You still have the “best defense in the league”.
Dayot Upamecano, for example, who has been much criticized recently, is “young now. He still needs time to become world class”.
Salihamidzic clear: Lewandowski stays with Bayern
The future of top scorer Robert Lewandowski is also a topic relating to FC Bayern. His contract expires in the summer of 2023 – Matthäus has repeatedly spoken out in favor of an early contract extension. Although Salihamidzic did not give a glimpse of how FC Bayern intends to proceed, he vehemently put a stop to a transfer in the summer.
“No,” the Bosnian replied unequivocally when asked whether the world footballer would be allowed to go if there was a lucrative offer in the summer: “Lewa is a very, very important part of our team. He is on the way to – hopefully – becoming our team to shoot titles.”
There is always speculation about Lewandowski that he could join another top European club, such as Real Madrid, next summer.