Following several conflicting reports, this is it. Leon Goretzka is leaving Bayern Munich this season.
Per the official website, the club has announced that Goretzka will be moving on. Reportedly, the German
international had been in talks with the club for a while, after which the decision had been made to not extend his contract this summer. Since 2018, Goretzka has been a crucial part of the squad.
Sporting director Christoph Freund, in the statement released, had assured that the player would give it his all in his time here. “Leon feels very much at home in this club and this team. Despite several quality inquiries, he has decided to stay here until the end of the season. After open and constructive talks, we have come to the conclusion together that he will seek out a new challenge in the summer,” he said. “It’ll be eight years at Bayern – eight extremely successful years with a strong person and player. Leon will give his all up to the summer to win as many more titles with the team as possible,” he declared.
Later, Freund would expand on his initial statement during the club’s press conference ahead of its match with Hamburger SV.
“We spoke openly with Leon about what happens in the summer. We can now say that Leon’s time at FC Bayern will be over in the summer. He will go another way after eight successful years. We’ll fight together in the coming months to achieve big things,” said Freund (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “We held a lot of talks in recent days. Leon feels extremely comfortable at this club and this team – and will stay at FC Bayern. He has decided to stay here. Leon has been playing really well in the past year. He’s a German international with an extremely high level. It’s no surprise that there are inquiries for him. Leon considered them, but he feels comfortable here and feels what’s happening here at the moment. He’s an important factor in our team.”
Head coach Vincent Kompany touched on his time with Goretzka as well.
“My relationship with Leon was always good and honest. His role with us was always important. I’m looking forward to the moments we can still enjoy together. That’s why his motivation to continue at FC Bayern was so high. I hope we can enjoy the coming months,” Kompany said (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).
As far as replacing Goretzka goes, Freund said that while there are plans in motion, nothing is imminent.
“We’ve obviously got our plans for what we can do with the squad. But we’ve still got five months. We also have good young players who are out on loan or with us. There’s still some time, but we’ve had a think about things,” Freund noted.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
Join the conversation!
Sign up for a user account and get:
- New, improved notifications system!
- Fewer ads
- Create community posts
- Comment on articles, community posts
- Rec comments, community posts
