Understanding for Simons
© Imago
Since his breakthrough at PSV Eindhoven 2022/23, Johan Bakayoko (22) has been regularly associated with clubs from the top European leagues. Within two years, the market value of the Belgian winger rose from 3 million to up to 45 million euros-Eredivisie record. However, a transfer did not come about until this summer, which is why the taxation gradually decreased to the current 30 million euros. However, the whereabouts were not due to a lack of offers, but that he wanted to finish his project at PSV under coach Peter Bosz. This was explained by RB Leipzig’s newcomer as part of a media round in Conversation with the transfer market.
“It was about waiting for the right time to change,” said Bakayoko. “Because I could have left last season. The club didn’t want me to change. It wasn’t just my decision.” He was part of a project at PSV and Bosz and, according to his own statement, had to keep the plan “that had been set up for me. I had a lot of conversations with the coach, and he was of the opinion that it was not the right time last year. The good relationship with him made it difficult for me to go. One does not want to disappoint such a person, because he helped me to be a better player.”
Bakayoko 94 of his 131 PSV games played 26 of his 33 goals under Bosz and scored 17 of his 22 templates. From the point of view of productivity, in 2024/25, however, his weak year. The 18-fold international scored nine goals in 30 Eredivisie games and only provided one template. His operational time also decreased, while PSV title rival Ajax stopped shortly before the end and defended the championship. Ultimately, RB Leipzig Bakayoko hired one year before the end of his contract for 18 million euros plus 4 million of possible bonuses and tied it to himself by 2030. PSV might have received a higher transfer if they had sold Bakayoko a year earlier. But they were also rewarded with winning a second title in a row. “He told me that we would still have a championship that I could go after two titles and he would even help me if necessary,” said Bakayoko about Bosz. “So I stayed on the plan.”
Bakayoko to RB Leipzig – in “one and a half years” in contact
The red bulls have been on Bakayoko for some time – that is why he also decided on Leipzig, while BVB and especially Bayer Leverkusen were also traded as interested parties: “For a year and a half, my advisor had had good contacts with the people here. They always wanted me. For me, it was a chance. (…) It is a perfect club that wants to encourage me and my potential.” Could he have switched to the Premier League? “It is difficult to say. Everything was very inconsistent and changed so often that you never really knew where you end up. But last season I had the feeling that Leipzig was the right club for me. My main goal was to switch to the Bundesliga.”
Also Jürgen Klopp, Global Sports Director of Red Bull’s football clubs since the beginning of the year, was a factor in the decision: “When I spoke to him, that was pretty good. He gave me the impression that this project would really be there for me: ‘We are really here to do better. We really need you.’ And that’s exactly what I want. It was all about football in the conversations: “We didn’t even talk about that he wanted me. I thought: If someone talks to you, wants to build a project with you and do not urge you to participate, give you the freedom to develop yourself – that’s all I need.”
The conversations with Leipzig’s new head coach Ole Werner were also good: “He is great, has the same mentality and the same hunger as a young player who comes into a new team. (…) He gives this hunger to all players and has left a great impression.”
So RB Leipzig’s newcomer Bakayoko wants to improve
Bakayoko is considered faster and physically strong wingers, who plays mainly on the right, but can also be used on the left and even number 10. In previous interviews, he said that he was using the training method of visualization to improve his game. “I visualize what I could have done better in the last game,” said Bakayoko when asked. “It is also a way to find new solutions in my game, find out what I can improve and what I lack. This can be all, from my decision making to shooting and fit to one-to-one situations. I just try to visualize and perfect it.”
And what motivates him? “It’s very easy for me,” said Bakayoko. “I want to get better and help the team get better and win titles. A goal and that everyone around me has the same goal. That is what motivates me.” After weeks of preparation and a difficult 4-2 victory against fourth division SV Sandhausen in the first cup round, Bakayoko, who was substituted in the second half and thus made his debut for Leipzig, is now ready for the Bundesliga. On the first day of the match, the opening game against Meister Bayern Munich: “I am excited. I’m used to big games. But that’s a completely different environment, a completely different start. There are hardly any bigger teams in Europe to start a season against.”
Bakayoko shows understanding for Xavi Simons’ situation in Leipzig
Although the game is starting again, RB Leipzig still has one or two question marks – especially with the Xavi Simons (22). According to the newcomer, this is not a problem for Bakayoko and his other teammates. “I played with him two years ago (at PSV, editor’s note), and it was the same,” said Bakayoko. “It was also associated with every single club in the world, like me and many other good players; that is simply part of the game.”
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It was numal that sometimes wanted to change, but sometimes it couldn’t. “If you bring good performances, you are asked, and then you can weigh up your options or not. Xavi is very professional. Everyone knows their qualities. I think players can learn from them. I try to put myself in this position because I have already been there, and it is not easy when everyone is talking about you. I’m not his consultant or something – that’s just the player he is.”
Interview and English original by Manuel Veth