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In a rather blunt interview after FC Bayern’s 2019-2020 Bundesliga opening draw with Hertha BBC, midfielder Renato Sanches bluntly declared that he wants to leave Bayern Munich. Sanches explained that he was shocked and disappointed with Niko Kovac’s decision regarding the starting XI for the match. Sport1’s Florian Plettenberg described the scene in the mixed zone:
Sanches stood alone in the corner and spoke with a colleague [Georg Hölzner] and me. Head down. Very quiet, sad voice. He waved us on. Are you sad? “Of course.” Expected the coach’s decision? “No.”
Plettenberg went on to describe the rest of his conversation Sanches, including his rather blunt desire to leave. Sanches said,
“That is not a good situation for me. It’s the second time that I want to go to another club. But they won’t let me go. 5 minutes is not enough for me.” [Plettenberg:] Do you want to transfer? “Yes.”
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Obviously, it is hard to blame Sanches for being disappointed. As a young player, he should be playing minutes. However, I have to believe FC Bayern is not the best situation for him. Bayern already has a loaded midfield with established starters such as Thoams Müller, Thiago and Javi Martinez, as well as young players who truthfully deserve to play more than Sanches in Goreztka and Tolisso. Overall, this situation has been a mess ever since Sanches came to Bayern following his Golden Boy performance in Euro 2016.
However, if you thought this was the end of the story, well I have got news for you. In true FC Bayern fashion, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge immediately shut down any possibility of Sanches leaving and further insinuated that Sanches should not speak so rashly:
Rummenigge responds to Sanches' statement: "We will not sell him! He would do well to calm down" [@__Kumbi__] pic.twitter.com/8B1s2ISQIK
— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) August 16, 2019
Truthfully, while I have not always been the biggest fan of how Sanches has carried himself at times (think last year with a similar situation), it is time for a amicable separation between the player and club. It seem abundantly clear that Sanches will not get the playing time he feels he deserves. FC Bayern would be better off without a player constantly stating his displeasure publicly.