Bayern President Herbert Hainer sent clear messages to several players at the annual general meeting. What is particularly explosive is what he didn’t say.
At FC Bayern’s annual general meeting, President Herbert Hainer addressed three players whose contract extensions the club is currently playing poker in the background about. As part of his speech, he addressed Jamal Musiala (contract until summer 2026) as well as Joshua Kimmich and Alphonso Davies (both until summer 2025).
“We are a club of guardrail setters, we have been since Beckenbauer, Hoeneß, Rummenigge, with Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Müller and Neuer,” said Hainer. “Jamal, Jo and Phonzy (Musiala, Kimmich, Davies; editor’s note) should also join in here – and set guidelines for the next generations, on and off the pitch!”
What was particularly noticeable and quite explosive was that Leroy Sané was missing from Hainer’s list. Sané’s contract with FC Bayern only runs until the end of this season. Most recently it was already heard that the record champions, if at all, only wanted to extend the contract with the national player at reduced salaries. As Sky reported, Musiala, Kimmich and Davies have already received concrete written offers, but Sané has not yet.
Is Hainer’s non-mention an indirect confirmation of this supposed tendency against a contract extension with Sané? Hainer was at least sending an indirect, hidden message to him.
When asked about Sané’s non-mention, he evaded his answer after the event in the mixed zone and missed the opportunity to clarify his alleged omission. Hainer simply said that he didn’t want to go through every single player whose contracts were expiring. He spoke to Musiala, Kimmich and Davies “because I am of the opinion that the three of them can be, or already are, a defining face of FC Bayern. That’s why it was important to me.”
Sané and his advisors probably followed what the president said very closely. And certainly also what he didn’t say.
Contract discussions will continue with all players in the coming weeks. As expected, the announcement of the contract extension with Musiala, which many fans had hoped for at the annual general meeting, did not materialize.
Hainer was able to announce new records and, for the first time, break the sound barrier of one billion euros in FC Bayern’s total sales. However, he was unable to present the contract extension with “difference player” Musiala, as Hainer described the 21-year-old, as a present under the Christmas tree to the Bayern entourage.
Sports director Max Eberl had already ruled out the announcement of possible deals the day before after the 4-2 win against Heidenheim. “Everyone knows the point of view about the players we want to keep. Now we’re trying to make sure we get the hang of it at some point,” said Eberl. The contracts of the two captains Manuel Neuer and Thomas Müller, as well as Sven Ulreich and Eric Dier, also expire after this season.
Hainer comments on the current status at Musiala
However, the highest priority remains Musiala, who should remain the face of the FC Bayern team in the future. The offensive midfielder once again showed that he has been that way for a long time on Saturday with his brace in the 4-2 win against Heidenheim. Eberl and Kompany even compared Musiala’s importance for Bayern with that of the two world footballers Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo at FC Barcelona and Real Madrid (you can read more about the Messi comparisons with Musiala here).
Hainer now gave a little insight into the current status of the discussions. “We have a huge interest in retaining Jamal for the long term and we are doing a lot to achieve this. I am cautiously positive,” he said.