Bayern Munich President Uli Hoeness rules out January transfers

Bayern Munich President Uli Hoeness rules out any winter transfer moves for the Bavarian giants, but he hints at some big changes next summer.

After starting the match in a completely dominant fashion, Bayern Munich fell 3-2 against Borussia Dortmund in the first Klassiker of Niko Kovac’s tenure. The Bavarians showed signs of life against the Bundesliga leaders, but ultimately fell short against Lucien Favre’s resilient side.

Robert Lewandowski stepped up against his former side, as did young stars Joshua Kimmich and Serge Gnabry. However, some of Bayern’s veteran players failed to live up to expectations.

Many fans have made known their displeasure with the current squad, calling for a necessary rejuvenation in many positions on the pitch. Speaking with Sport Bild after yesterday’s match, President Uli Hoeness promised that those changes are coming, but not during the winter break.

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"“We certainly won’t make any changes in the winter transfer window. We will have Coman back before Christmas and Thiago can play again in two or three weeks. Tolisso will also be back before the end of the year. I don’t think the coach should have a problem setting up a good team.”"

This isn’t the first time Hoeness has referred to players returning from injury as “new signings,” so it’s not entirely surprising to hear him say that. But Bayern will also be bolstered by Alphonso Davies in the winter window, who will add more depth on the wings.

Hoeness’ quotes did not end there, however. Though Bayern won’t make any moves this winter, the following summer could be quite a different story.

"“After this season, a lot is going to happen.“Next year, when the second stage of the upheaval comes, we will change the face of the team quite a bit.”"

Those are some pretty bold words from a club president! He could just be providing lip service to the media, but Hoeness is not one to make such claims without actually acting on them.

Furthermore, this is something the Bayern board has hinted at in the past. Apparently their reluctance to spend this past summer was due to their plan to spend heavily in 2019. Hoeness’ calmly delivered statements here further cement the belief that Die Roten could be in for some massive changes in the summer.

Both Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben will be out of contract by then, so the first item on Bayern’s agenda will no doubt be adding significant firepower to their attack. Perhaps Paulo Dybala actually is their prime candidate to fill this role.

Regardless of whom the Bavarian board set their sights on, they won’t be coming this January. That means Niko Kovac must work with the squad at his disposal to convince both his employers and fans that he is the right man to lead this squad forward during this stage of “upheaval.”