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Bayern Munich youngster Woo-Yeong Jeong has been a bright spot among the U-23 team, and the 19-year-old South Korean has also recorded a handful of first team call-ups, including a cameo in Bayern’s 5-1 win over Benfica in the Champions League earlier this season.
The winger was also on the bench for Bayern’s league matches against Fortuna Dusseldorf and Hannover 96. According to kicker, Mainz is interested in signing Jeong during the summer transfer window to try and bolster their squad, which currently has an average age of 24 per transfermarkt .
Don’t think we missed a beat when he made his debut while also becoming Bayern’s first ever South Korean player!
Woo-Yeong Jeong is about to come on to make his competitive debut for Bayern and become Bayern's first ever South Korean player
— Bavarian Football Works (@BavarianFBWorks) November 27, 2018
Jeong’s current contract with Bayern runs through June 2022, but Mainz would likely be prepared to pay in the mid single-digit million range. On one hand, Jeong has little experience in the Bundesliga, but Bayern does have the luxury of slightly inflating their asking price since he’s contractually bound to the club until 2022.
In the Regionalliga Bayern this season, Jeong has tallied 12 goals and four assists for the U-23s and his most recent exploits for Holger Seitz’s side saw him bag a hat-trick in the comprehensive 3-0 win over Ingolstadt II. The result puts Bayern’s U-23s at the top of the table as second-placed VfB Eichstätt have already played 22 matches and Bayern have only played 21.
Full highlights from Jeong’s hat-trick and the big win over Ingolstadt II:
⚽⚽⚽ die Highlights vom 3⃣:0⃣-Sieg der #BayernAmateure gegen die U23 der @Schanzer #MiaSanMia #FCB #FCBAmateure pic.twitter.com/LAhfLdW82m
— FC Bayern Campus (@FCBjuniorteam) February 25, 2019
With Bayern’s big summer plans in the transfer window that have been confirmed by club President Uli Hoeness, it remains to be unseen whether or not Bayern would benefit from letting Jeong go. On one hand, moving to a club like Mainz could be highly beneficial for Jeong’s development since he’ll get more opportunities to play at a high level. Niko Kovac, however, may want to keep him in the ranks with the intent of giving him more first team call-ups next season.
What does everyone think? Should Bayern sell Jeong to Mainz if the price is right? Let us know in the comments section below!