Bayern Munich bosses speak on dropped pursuits of Nico Williams and Rafael Leao | OneFootball

Current FC Bayern Munich board-member-for-sport and long-time Bayern personnel chief Uli Hoeneß have had a chance comment on some recent transfer targets that slipped through their fingers. Eberl and Hoeneß spoke to two sources about the dropped pursuit of two players. The Bundesliga record champions are reportedly targeting quite a few attacking reinforcements for the flanks.

First, there is the matter of Nico Williams. The Spanish international unexpectedly signed a contract extension with his La Liga outfit Athletic Bilboa. This despite the fact that a move to FC Barcelona seemed a certainty for the 22-year-old. Speaking to BRsport24, Hoeneß revealed that he had spoken to former Bayern and German national team head coach Hansi Flick about the surprise about-face.

The current Barça head coach was quite surprised.

“I’m in close contact with Hansi Flick at his vacation home at Lake Tegernsee,” Hoeneß told the German source. “They were also surprised because they had more or less already had a commitment. I’m not sure what he [Williams] wishes to accomplish with this. People just want more money. A new contract and a new exit clause for next year.“

Eberl spoke to German broadcaster DAZN shortly before kickoff in Bayern’s Club World Cup quarterfinal match against PSG this afternoon. Eberl shrugged off Bayern’s failed attempt to procure Williams, noting that the German giants never really considered him a realistic candidate anyway.

“It didn’t affect us at all,” Eberl said on the sidelines in Atlanta. “We, the sporting management team together with [sporting director] Christoph Freund, naturally discussed whether a player like Nico Williams was feasible. When we heard of the salary demands just to open up talks, Bayern Munich very quickly backed down and said: We won’t go for it.”

In the case of AC Milan’s Rafael Leao, Hoeneß was unequivocal in telling his source that the Portuguese international never really was a serious option. Hoeneß spoke of “unproductive talks” between Leao and the FCB administrative team. Eberl glibly confirmed this too in his interview.

GGFN | Peter Weis