On Friday, a report from dropped from Sky Sport journalist Florian Plettenberg, which detailed six players who were “allowed to leave” this summer.
Among the names listed, was center-back Matthijs de Ligt, which shocked many fans. Now, Plettenberg has checked back in (via @iMiaSanMia) with why De Ligt is now considered to be expendable — his salary and injury history:
One of the reasons Matthijs de Ligt is on the list of players for sale this summer is his salary. The Dutchman is the centre-back who earns the most at the club with over €15m per year, in addition to his injury record.
De Ligt sign his contract under former sporting director Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidžić, who had a propensity to ink player to bigger deals than the club now feels comfortable with. Still, squabbling over a few million euros when the team’s primary objective is to win every trophy possible seems like a small club mentality.
BFW Analysis
Any thought of selling De Ligt is silly. The Dutchman has been the club’s most consistent player over the past two seasons and best center-back — and it is not even close. unloading the Dutchman would be a big blow to the quality and leadership on the backline.
Looking for some thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich’s pursuit of João Palhinha, how he might fit in the squad, and what the roster fallout might look like? Then check out our latest Bavarian Podcast Works Show, where we also hit on why Sky Sport’s report on six big player sales might not be so far offbase and why the German national team did not give fans a ton of confidence after the friendlies against Ukraine and Greece. You can get the podcast on Spotify or below: