Bayern Munich: Hasan Salihamidzic reveals stance on winter transfers
The upcoming winter transfer window could be unique for clubs across Europe. Since World Cup is set to take place in November, clubs may try to do business in January since players will be overworked and there is a big risk of injuries. Bayern Munich has been already linked with a few players in the past few weeks, but they may wait until summer to conclude deals.
The defending Bundesliga champions would ideally like to sign a world-class number nine to bolster the attack. However, there will be very few quality options available in January that can significantly improve the squad.
Die Roten traditionally does very little transfer business during the winter transfer window. The Bavarian club is known for efficiently approaching the bigger transfer window during summer. Moreover, Bayern’s long-term targets are often not available in January.
Bayern’s sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic is also not exactly interested in completing transfers in the winter. While talking to club’s magazine 51 (via SportBild), Salihamidzic admitted that he is not a big fan of the winter transfer window as he prefers long-term planning in the summer. However, he will be keenly following World Cup in Qatar to explore possible opportunities.
"“I’m not the biggest fan of January transfers because I usually complete the planning for a season in the summer. But of course we will follow the World Cup very closely.”“I don’t believe in big transfers (in January) – I hope above all that our players get through the tournament healthy and injury-free.”"
Bayern has historically completed very few deals in the winter transfer window. They often announce deals that will be completed on free transfers in January. Alexander Nubel, Leon Goretzka, Sebastian Rudy, and Robert Lewandowski are some of the deals that Die Roten completed in January over the past decade. All four players signed a pre-contract agreement with Bayern and officially completed the move in the following summer.
The Bavarian club can complete one such deal in the upcoming winter transfer window. They had numerous bids rejected for Konrad Laimer from RB Leipzig in the summer. However, Leipzig stood firm and kept the Austrian midfielder. Laimer’s current deal at Leipzig ends next summer, so Bayern can reach a pre-contract agreement in January.
From a financial point of view, Die Roten may not have a significant budget to complete deals in January. Salihamidzic will be already focussing on the next summer, with Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane emerging as the top transfer target. Kane will not be leaving Spurs in winter, so a deal for him in three months is out of the equation for Bayern.
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The Bavarian club will only look at stopgap signings if there is an injury crisis in one particular position. As things stand, it is likely to be a very quiet winter window for the defending Bundesliga champions. Salihamidzic and his team will probably start laying the groundwork for summer deals from January.