Kenan Yildiz’s agent criticises Bayern Munich for lack of appreciation

The past five years have seen Bayern Munich focus on getting young players to the club before they become stars. They managed to get Alphonso Davies and Jamal Musiala for a reasonable transfer fee. Both players are now part of Die Roten’s spine.

The recruitment at the academy level has also been impressive at Bayern. They have brought the best talent from across the globe. The arrival of Christoph Freund from Red Bull Salzburg could see more improvement in the recruitment process at the youth level. Freund did a fine job of identifying and developing young players at RB Salzburg.

Bayern have also managed to keep hold of young players when there has been interest from other big clubs. However, they failed to keep Kenan Yildiz in 2022, as he left Bavaria after spending close to a decade at the club. Yildiz went on to join Juventus on a free transfer.

The Turkish attacking midfielder is part of the first team at Juventus this season. Yildiz recently scored his first Serie A goal for the Italian club. While talking to Tuttosport (via iMiaSanMia), Yildiz’s agent admitted that Bayern showed a lack of respect towards the player in contract negotiations.

""At Bayern Munich, even though we had excellent relations with Hasan Salihamidzic and Marco Neppe, they approached us too late for the renewal.""

- Kenan Yildiz’s agent Hector Peris Ros

Yildiz has also featured for the Turkish national team. The young forward scored against Germany during the international break in November. Bayern’s loss is going to be Juventus’ gain. Nevertheless, it is a lesson learned for Rekordmeister on how to not approach contract renewals with bright young talent.

The Bavarian club is currently enjoying a good period in terms of having young players from the academy in the first team. Aleksandar Pavlovic has not looked out of place whenever he has started games for Die Roten in midfield during Hinrunde. Frans Kratzig is also part of the first-team training. The young midfielder/defender signed his first professional contract with the club in October.

Bayern recently strengthened the attack of the reserves team by agreeing on a deal with Adelaide United’s Nestory Irankunda. The 17-year-old forward will arrive in Munich at the end of the season. He is expected to play for the reserves while getting integrated into the first-team training.

The recruitment and development plans for young players under Freund’s leadership will be clearer by the summer. The Austrian sporting director wants to maintain a good balance between young players and stars in the first team. The Bavarian faithful will hope that a Yildiz-like situation will be avoided in the future.