Bayern Munich and Juventus Turin are reportedly close to reaching an agreement about the transfer fee for Douglas Costa that would send the winger south of the Alps.
According to L’Equipe, the clubs are negotiating a transfer fee somewhere in the neighborhood of €40 million. Previous reports put Bayern’s asking price at €50 million and Juventus's starting bid at €35 million. Bayern signed Douglas Costa from Shakhtar Donetsk for €30 million two years ago.
As previously reported, Douglas Costa has already agreed to personal terms with Juventus. It is believed that the Serie A champion has offered him a contract for four years. Douglas Costa’s current contract with Bayern Munich ends in 2020.
A fee of €40 million would conveniently almost completely offset the €41.5 million that Bayern Munich just paid Olympique Lyonnais for Corentin Tolisso, setting a new record for the most expensive transfer in Bundesliga history.
It would be thrifty business if Bayern could immediately pay off their latest record-breaking transfer. Another possibility, however, is that Bayern intended to spend the money anyway and this transaction is merely setting the stage for another, even bigger transfer. That remains to be seen.