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When Ivan Perisic returned to Inter Milan after winning a treble, Bayern Munich was left without a reliable fourth winger.
Some would say, that roughly five months later, that is still the case — and Hansi Flick might be one of them.
Flick was reportedly not thrilled when he was told Douglas Costa would be arriving on loan from Juventus. More, Flick was actually expecting Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidzic to be able to bring in Callum Hudson-Odoi from Chelsea.
Per Sport Bild (print edition), Flick is now planning on taking his search for a fourth wing player in a different direction:
In the summer, Flick assumed until the very end that he would get Callum Hudson-Odoi from FC Chelsea. When the coach learned very late that Douglas Costa was coming, his enthusiasm was limited. Loan player Costa should return to Juventus Turin in the summer. On the wings, Bayern is also planning with its own talents. Jamal Musiala should sign a professional contract until 2025 on his birthday, January 26. Musiala will be trained as the fourth man alongside Coman, Gnabry, and Sané in addition to his central role.
Musiala as a flexible wing/central midfielder could be a dynamic option for Flick moving forward and would also allow Salihamidzic to potentially divert funds to another area of need if the sporting director can secure a contract extension for Musiala.
Goal, however, thinks there could be a roadblock in getting that deal done: Musiala’s wage demands:
Bayern Munich and Jamal Musiala remain deadlocked over talks to renew the youngster’s contract after breaking a host of records at the club in 2020. Still just 17 years old, Musiala wants a bumper new £100,000-per-week deal, with the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United and Man City monitoring the situation.
Musiala is currently still on a youth contract, which has just 18 months left to run, at the Allianz Arena and a further impasse in talks could lead to a transfer in the summer. The wonderkid’s demands are high, but with Premier League interest and a host of records broken, his camp feels that he has already proven his worth.
If true, Bayern Munich will have some tough choices to make. Musiala certainly looks like he is a future star, but are the Bavarians ready — and willing — to up his salary into that aforementioned stratosphere?