Report: Jerome Boateng will leave Bayern Munich this summer

The jubilant scenes at the Allianz Arena as the Meisterschale was lifted were slightly subdued by the fact that Jerome Boateng was noticeably absent from the celebrations, as reported by Süddeutsche Zeitung. The center-back spent most of his time celebrating with his wife and two girls, isolated from the rest of the team and staff while they doused each other with beer. Boateng was the first player to leave the Allianz Arena and did not attend the team’s party at Nockherberg, because he left to attend a friend’s wedding party.

Boateng was an unused substitute against Frankfurt, and he seemed relatively uninterested watching on from the bench. But there is another reason why the celebration may have been bittersweet for the 30-year old. Per SZ, Boateng will leave the club during the summer transfer window, and the decision was apparently made in March.

When Benjamin Pavard and Lucas Hernandez join the ranks this summer, Boateng’s standing in the squad will certainly diminish. Not to mention the fact that Niko Kovac has shown a preference for Mats Hummels and Niklas Sule:

SZ also reports that Boateng has asked Bayern to release him from his contract, which runs through 2021. The club, however, almost certainly will opt instead to collect a considerable transfer fee from whichever club wants to buy Boateng. Per transfermarkt, he’s currently valuated at around €30.64m. Wherever he goes, he wont get the sort of farewell that Franck Ribery, Arjen Robben, and Rafinha had after clinching the title:

Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, and Napoli have all reportedly expressed interest in signing Boateng, but nothing concrete has emerged yet. PSG or Juventus would appear to be the more attractive destinations, because both clubs are in need of defensive reinforcements.