In an interview with Der Spiegel (as captured by @iMiaSanMia), Hans Wirtz, the father of former Bayern Munich transfer target Florian Wirtz, detailed why his son ultimately opted to join Liverpool FC rather than Bayern Munich.
As expected, there appeared to be some misalignment within Bayern Munich in what the plan was for Florian Wirtz:
On the meetings with Uli Hoeneß and rumours about an agreement with Bayern.
Wirtz: “I couldn’t give a commitment because Florian ultimately makes the decision. It was
ADstill open at the time. The situation with Bayern was difficult because Uli Hoeneß and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge made incredible efforts and also made a clear analysis of the sporting aspect. I have the greatest respect for Uli Hoeneß and his life’s work. After Florian’s ACL tear in 2022, he selflessly helped us quickly get an appointment for surgery in Innsbruck. We are still grateful to him for that. That’s why the final phone call with Uli Hoeneß was very difficult for me.”
How did Hoeneß react?
Wirtz: “We had spoken several times beforehand, so he was as objective and fair as I’d ever known him. But of course, he couldn’t hide his disappointment. After all, he had personally worked hard to bring about this transfer.”
The “SZ” newspaper reported that a meeting with all the parties took place in Munich on Sunday, May 18. However, Vincent Kompany reportedly was unable to convince your son.
Wirtz: “Vincent Kompany also had very good thoughts and ideas about how he wanted to integrate Florian into the FC Bayern team. In the end, it was a matter of details; the decision ultimately had to do with the different sporting situations and Florian’s role. Financially, there weren’t any major differences between the two clubs. Again, Bayern Munich really tried hard, but a decision had to be made. Florian saw the move abroad as a new personal and sporting challenge and therefore chose Liverpool FC . We all shared this view.”
While it does not appear as if Kompany was necessarily poor with his sales pitch, it appears some of what the coach said might have differed from what Wirtz was told by other members of the Bayern Munich organization.
A learning moment? Sure...just a very costly one. How good would it be to have Florian Wirtz right now?
The careers of Liverpool FC’s Luis Diaz and Bayern Munich board member for sport Max Eberl could end up intertwined if the transfer move goes through. Meanwhile, is the rest of the Bundesliga sick of being bullied by Bayern Munich and is the league bleeding too much talent? Also, Paul Wanner and Lennart Karl could be in line for opportunities during the preseason...can the youngster take advantage of those chances? Finally, the father of Florian Wirtz talks through how the decision to join Liverpool played out and you can hear how HBO screwed BPW this week. You can get all of that on the latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show! The podcast is available on Patreon, Acast, Spotify, any leading podcast distributor, or below:
Also, be sure to stay tuned to Bavarian Podcast Works for all of your up to date coverage on Bayern Munich and Germany. Check us out on Patreon and follow us on Twitter @BavarianFBWorks, @BavarianPodcast @TheBarrelBlog, @BFWCyler, @2012nonexistent, @TommyAdams71 and more.
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