It’s been a busy week for Bayern Munich, having signed contract extensions for both Hansi Flick and Thomas Müller in the past five days. Both Flick and Müller signed extensions that will keep them at the club until 2023, much to the delight of the rest of the players and staff at Bayern, President Herbert Hainer included.
Since Flick has taken charge of Bayern, Muller has been one of the club’s most consistent performances, and his contract renewal is nothing short of well served. Hainer even went as far as saying Muller is as much of a symbol of Munich as Oktoberfest (Goal):
It is, of course, very good news and I was incredibly happy when I heard [that Muller had signed a new deal]. Thomas Müller is a hero, a symbol of FC Bayern Munich. He’s spent his entire footballing career here and he’s blossomed once again in recent months under Hansi Flick. He provides so many assists, he’s an outstanding player, and I think that Thomas Müller belongs to FC Bayern, much like Oktoberfest belongs to the city of Munich. And in that respect, that’s really great news.
When the topic of extending Flick’s contract with the club came up for discussion with Bayern’s supervisory board, Hainer admitted that it didn’t take them very long to reach the decision to extend him until 2023. Everyone on the board is entirely convinced of Flick’s ability to lead the club to more titles with an attractive brand of football:
When the matter was brought to the supervisory board, we made a very quick and unanimous decision. As head coach of FC Bayern Munich, you will of course be measured by titles and that will certainly be the case with Hansi Flick. But we are absolutely convinced by Hansi Flick. If you look at what he has done with the team over the past few months, he has not only got the team winning, but it’s also about the way the team plays. They play incredibly attractive, great, attacking football, they score a lot of goals and win most games. They’re already so good, but I’m convinced Hansi Flick will continue to develop this team.
Both contract extensions more than likely would have still happened even if there wasn’t a footballing hiatus due to the coronavirus. The timing, of course, might have been slightly different if the season hadn’t been interrupted, but the club still has decide on the fate of Manuel Neuer, Thiago Alcantara, and David Alaba. The trio of players still have contracts that are set to expire next year, but Flick has made it clear that he hopes that all three extend before the season ends, whenever that may be.