Recap of Bayern Munich's 2016 summer transfer window

Based on how quickly they got their business done, Bayern Munich could probably say they acquired players in the spring transfer window. By the time the market opened on July 1, new coach Carlo Ancelotti believed the business the club needed to do was already done.

What Bayern decided to do instead was to trim down their roster, profiting off some of their squad players in order to help fund the upper-echelon stars they brought in. That involved waving goodbye to some investments they were hoping would pay dividends, and instead cashing out when they had the chance.

Here is a recap of the business Bayern completed in the 2016 summer transfer window.

Arrivals

Mats Hummels (€38 million, Borussia Dortmund)

This transfer may not be as expensive as it was reported, at least according to Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. Regardless, Bayern solidified their already top-notch defense by pairing Germany's two best center backs together. He will get whistled when he goes to Dortmund this season (and maybe longer), but he has already put in performances that Bayern fans can cheer about.

Renato Sanches (€35 million, Benfica)

Bayern moved fast for Renato Sanches, acquiring the 18-year-old midfielder before he burst onto the scene at the European Championship for Portugal. He might end up costing a lot more, but it will be well worth the investment. This is also the fifth-straight summer Bayern have acquired a player from a team they faced in the Champions League the season before (Douglas Costa in 2015, Xabi Alonso in 2014, Thiago and Mario Götze in 2013, Xherdan Shaqiri in 2012).

Departures

Medhi Benatia (€3 million loan, Juventus)

Benatia came into Bayern out of shape two seasons ago, and unsurprisingly he leaves as an injury-prone liability. Bayern reportedly want to cut ties with him entirely by inserting an obligatory buy clause, but Juventus negotiated a €17 million option to buy. With Hummels and Jerome Boateng as the set-in-stone starters and Javi Martinez as the clear third option, Benatia had no other choice than to find another destination to play football.

Mario Götze (€26 million, Borussia Dortmund)

Bayern and Götze reached a career crossroads with his contract running down, and that road eventually lead back to Dortmund. Though he had stretches of quality, he did not have the Munich experience he probably expected when he moved to Bayern in 2013. At Dortmund he has another opportunity to realize his potential, though he has to get fit first.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (€15 million, Southampton)

He is one of Bayern’s best academy products in recent seasons, but not even a solid loan spell at Schalke could convince Bayern to hang on to him. Had he spent another season with Bayern, he would have either sat on the bench or gone on loan for a third time. Bayern and Hojbjerg instead cashed in when Southampton came calling, and now the Danish international is getting a chance to become a regular player.

Sebastian Rode (€12 million, Borussia Dortmund)

Rode seemed like a player Bayern really wanted two years ago, perhaps to become Bastian Schweinsteiger’s long-term replacement. He appeared to be more of a fish out of water, a hard-working box-to-box players in a midfield of majestic passers. Thomas Tuchel has already found the proper use for him at Dortmund, and he may force some of their players onto the bench rather than sitting there himself.

Missed Targets

The Serge Gnabry saga is one of the strangest transfer stories involving Bayern in recent years. Initial reports suggested that Bayern could buy the Olympics star from Arsenal before loaning him to Werder Bremen. When Bremen sporting director Frank Baumann insisted his club were pursuing Gnabry on their own, other reports surfaced that Bayern would pay his transfer fee for Bremen.

Baumann insisted again that there weren’t any “agreements with other clubs” when Bremen unveiled Gnabry on Wednesday. The speculation around this transfer is hard to ignore, but if Bayern were involved, it may have been just as a facilitator to bring a German player back to the Bundesliga – with an added benefit should he pan out.

The other two Germany youth internationals Bayern were linked with were Hoffenheim’s Jeremy Toljan and Bayer Leverkusen’s Julian Brandt. Bayern technical director Michael Reschke reportedly reached out to Leverkusen about Brandt, a player who he helped bring to Leverkusen from Wolfsburg’s academy two and a half years ago. Leverkusen sporting director Rudi Voller brushed the speculation away, telling Sport Bild: “It is normal for a top club like Bayern to be interested in a player like Julian Brandt.”

Bayern Munich II

Bayern’s second team had a lot of trouble trying to reach the 3. Liga last season, but they were unlikely to top Jahn Regensburg in the Regionalliga Bayern anyways. The hope of promotion is renewed this season, and Bayern continue to target experienced players to help guide their youngsters up the footballing ladder.

Top Arrivals

1. Erdal Öztuk (free transfer, Hoffenheim II) – He was behind some of the other players in Hoffenheim’s youth set-up, but Bayern decided to give him a good look in preseason. He should get consistent time in the Bayern II midfield as he tries to get a professional contract.
2. Torsten Oehrl (free transfer, Wehen Wiesbaden) – He is now the only player in the second team squad with Bundesliga experience, playing 55 Bundesliga games with Werder Bremen and Fortuna Düsseldorf. He scored eight goals in 25 appearances with Wiesbaden’s first team last season.
3. Marco Hingerl (free transfer, SC Freiburg) – he took the leap from Bayern’s U19 squad to the 2. Bundesliga last season to try to get into Freiburg’s team. That prospect didn’t work out, spending most of his time with Freiburg reserves. He has played in every game for Bayern’s second team upon his return, though he may have run out of chances to try to impress Bayern’s first team coaches.

Top Departures

1. Patrick Weihrauch (free transfer, Würzburger Kickers) – He played on another level last season in the final year of his contract with Bayern II, and former Regionalliga Bayern club Würzburg took notice. He has a goal and an assist in two games in the 2. Bundesliga, and he started Würzburg’s cup victory against Eintracht Braunschweig.
2. Matthias Strohmaier (free transfer, FC Vaduz) – He was not the most touted of prospects in the second team, but he was still a consistent part of Bayern II’s defense. He is now in the Swiss Super League with Vaduz, who gave him a full 90 minutes in the second leg of their Europa League qualifier against Midtjylland after Vaduz lost the first leg 3-0.
3. Steeven Ribéry (free transfer, US Boulogne) – Bayern gave Franck Ribéry’s brother a chance and he put in some solid performances with the reserve team over two seasons. That got him a contract with Boulogne, the same club in which Franck started his career.