Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman says he has “several options” regarding his future

It’s no secret that Kingsley Coman and his representatives were actively pursuing a move away from Bayern Munich during the summer transfer window, but nothing wound up materializing for the French winger. He had even gone as far as hiring Pini Zahavi to try to broker a transfer to the Premier League, which was his preferred destination, but subsequently fired him when he wasn’t able to find a club interested enough to buy Coman.

Coman’s current contract at Bayern expires in June 2023 and it might take a lot of convincing from Bayern to get him to stay and renew his contract with the amount of options he has available. Speaking earlier this week, he said that he has “several options,” but that the door “not slammed to stay here” (Abendzeitung). For now, he said he’s fully focused on finishing the season with Bayern, but talks will have to intensify with regards to his future during the summer. “At the moment I just want to finish the season and give my best. We’ll see after that, but that’s still a bit off,” he said.

The current financial situation at Bayern certainly won’t make things any easier in terms of negotiating a new contract for Coman. They posted losses upwards of 150 million euros as a result of the coronavirus pandemic halting matches for nearly three months and keeping fans out of the Allianz Arena for the better part of the past 18 months. The state of Bavaria is also re-entering strict coronavirus restrictions and Bayern will be without fans at the Allianz Arena for the remainder of 2021 and quite possibly a decent portion of 2022. The club also already faces tough battles trying to negotiate new contracts for both Serge Gnabry and Niklas Sule. Like Coman, Sule has options elsewhere and could very well opt for a transfer away from Bayern as his contract is set to expire this summer.

“We have had talks of course. The club will continue to talk to my agent and maybe we will have some news soon,” Coman revealed, suggesting there have already been some preliminary discussions between his representatives and the club. He said he’s always wanted to play for a “top club” but said, “FC Bayern is a top club, one of the largest in Germany and the world. I’m very grateful for everything that has been done for me.”

While everything Coman said suggests he very well could stay, the actions he took over the summer seem to point more towards the direction of him trying to push for a move away. He’s been in a decent run of form for Julian Nagelsmann and scored a crucial goal in the 3-2 Der Klassiker win over Borussia Dortmund, so if he continues to perform, his value will only increase for both Bayern and prospective buying clubs.

Photo by Alex Gottschalk/DeFodi Images via Getty Images