Bayern Munich made several structural changes in 2023. After a dismal 2022/23 campaign, Bayern decided to part ways with Hasan Salihamidzic and Oliver Kahn. Salihamidzic’s departure was on amicable terms, but things ended on a bitter note with Kahn.
The Bavarian club replaced Kahn with Jan-Christian Dreesen, while Salihamidzic’s replacement was Christoph Freund from RB Salzburg. Freund started working for Die Roten on September 1, which meant Dreesen, Thomas Tuchel, and technical director- Marco Neppe worked together to sign players in the summer.
Freund’s first transfer window is set to be challenging as he is tasked with making a couple of additions to the squad in January. The Austrian is known for signing and developing young talents into superstars during his time at Salzburg.
As things stand, Freund has the control of completing the transfer business in January for Bayern. However, things may change a bit after the winter transfer window. Max Eberl is expected to join Bayern later this season. He is expected to take up the sport director role at the board level, which was vacated by Salihamidzic.
Freund and Eberl are expected to work in tandem when it comes to squad building once Eberl’s appointment is confirmed. According to SportBild (via iMiaSanMia), Freund has no problems when it comes to working with Eberl for transfers and contract renewals.
Eberl has been heavily linked with a move to Bayern since 2017. The Bavarian club went ahead with Salihamidzic in 2017 when Eberl was working at Borussia Monchengladbach. He left Gladbach to join RB Leipzig at the start of 2023. Eberl was linked with a move to Bayern ever since Salihamidzic was sacked at the end of last season.
After the arrival of Freund at Bayern, there was still a vacancy left at the board level. Salihamidzic was promoted to the board after his good work in the sporting director position. Once Eberl was sacked by Leipzig, his move to Die Roten looked inevitable.
Eberl’s work at Borussia Monchengladbach was impressive. His arrival will help Die Roten in the transfer market. Uli Hoeness recently admitted that Freund will help in integrating more young players from the academy into the first team. It will be interesting to see how Die Roten will delegate the transfer work between Freund and Eberl. For the time being, Freund is the main man for Bayern in the ongoing transfer window. The Austrian is looking to sign a versatile defender and defensive midfielder to strengthen Tuchel’s squad for the rest of the season.