FC Bayern Munich is starting the new year with a bunch of open contract questions. Sports director Max Eberl doesn’t give his players an ultimatum – and yet he exerts gentle pressure.
For the first time, Munich sports director Max Eberl is returning to his old place of work in Mönchengladbach with FC Bayern. That was definitely “something special,” he said the day before the game on Saturday. But he actually can’t waste that much thought on it.
Eberl and the expiring contracts of the top stars
Because Eberl is challenged in his role at FC Bayern Munich right in the middle of the winter transfer period, a puzzle builder greeted a little from the press podium. In addition to the usual mental challenge of selling or buying players (which probably won’t concern him as much this time), he is currently primarily concerned with keeping his squad together beyond the summer. There is a whole heap of puzzle pieces in front of him that have to come together in the end.
There are so many question marks at FC Bayern right now – and these only mean football-related questions. There are the contracts that expire directly in the summer. What’s next for Joshua Kimmich, Alphonso Davies, Leroy Sané, Manuel Neuer, Sven Ulreich and Thomas Müller? Since January 1st, you can all officially talk to other clubs about a new contract from July 1st, 2025. And then there is Jamal Musiala. His contract expires in 2026 – and he is considered a player of the future around whom Eberl wants to build his FC Bayern. Only with him can Eberl actually complete his puzzle properly. Otherwise he would probably have to buy a medium piece.
Everything should be clarified by the hot phase of the season
On Friday, Eberl had to make a public statement at the press conference; the ongoing speculation about his stars is probably still bothering him a bit. However, he cannot and does not want to report implementation – he has obviously not given any actor an ultimatum so far. But: The open questions should be clarified by the start of the hot phase of the season at the latest, when, according to their own self-image, the Munich team is playing for the Champions League and championship trophy. He spoke of weeks or months, yes. But that could also mean two months.
“I can’t say when the finish line will be crossed. But what we have all agreed on is that we don’t want to get into the important phase. Nobody is interested in speculation bothering us,” said Eberl on Friday. He also agreed with the players on this.
Will Alphonso Davies be the first piece of the puzzle?
Because: His FC Bayern wants to “play an extremely successful second half of the season. That is above all else. At the same time, we are trying to make our coach, the advisors and players happy.” A first piece of the puzzle could be left-back Davies, who under Kompany is slowly but steadily returning to the world-class level that Bayern fans had become accustomed to years ago. We also hear less about the flirtation with Real Madrid, and on Friday some media even reported that Bayern had already agreed on a contract with the Canadian until 2029.
“It’s no secret that we’re talking to the agents, to the players whose contracts are expiring or who still have a contract. I’m ruling out the possibility of anything else happening this week,” said the sports director. At least if this week lasted until Sunday, Eberl added meaningfully. So an agreement next week? “Unfortunately, he couldn’t say much other than what he said recently: We’re working very intensively on it.” Nice side effect: Davies and Musiala get along great – Davies staying would also be an impetus for these negotiations.
Matthäus intervenes, Müller is allowed to decide for himself
Musiala and Kimmich are currently the most difficult to replace; Eberl is likely to be having the most intensive discussions with them. Kimmich is considered the captain of the future. With a bit of a smile, Eberl also noted Lothar Matthäus’ suggestion not to give Kimmich the captain’s armband until after Neuer’s career had ended. “When Lothar brings creative suggestions, you listen to them and are very grateful that a lot of people are putting a lot of thought into our contract discussions,” said the 51-year-old.
On the other hand, the contract negotiations with Müller, Neuer and Ulreich will probably be easier. Their extensions are probably just a formality. According to Eberl, Müller in particular has complete freedom to decide about his future. “He doesn’t need to negotiate too much. If he says he wants to continue, then we’ll look deeply into each other’s eyes, look at the squad and then we’ll move on,” said the sports director. “And if he maybe says, I don’t feel like it anymore, okay, then things will continue for us and then we have to see whether we can get Thomas to help us in another way. But that’s really a conversation that’s still ongoing is far away.”
Source: BR24Sport
January 10, 2025 – 6:30 p.m
