Thomas Tuchel dishes on why Bayern Munich pursued Arsenal’s Declan Rice

One of the weirder stories to dominate the early part of this summer’s transfer window was Bayern Munich’s sudden interest in Premier League ace Declan Rice. The former West Ham United defensive midfielder has long been a prize commodity in England — and suddenly the German Rekordmeister appeared open to shelling out a huge transfer spend to land him.

Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel pulled back the curtain on that pursuit in his recent press conference.

“It could have been an interesting addition to have a player with his character in the squad,” Tuchel explained (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “He’s a good player and he went to a good club. He has a profile that I don’t think we have in the squad. It could be interesting to have it.”

Rice never seemed likely to go anywhere other than Manchester City or Arsenal FC, where he ultimately ended up. But Tuchel’s public comments on the now-failed pursuit are notable — they’re a clear signal that the new Bayern coach has his eye on shaking up the midfield profile in the future.

And perhaps it’s a little bit of groundwork for any player who might envision himself to be more defensive-minded: Bayern Munich might come calling next summer. Time to start thinking about it early. Can they seem themselves in red?

Looking for some transfer talk and to find out what is going on with Bayern Munich? Check out our Weekend Warm-up Podcast on Spotify or below:

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