Bayern Munich’s ongoing quest to sign Jonathan Tah from Bundesliga rivals Bayer Leverkusen is still ongoing. Though the Bavarians’ reported opening €18 million bid and its’ subsequent rejection led to a long period of waiting for any movement in the saga, kicker reports, as captured by @iMiaSanMia, that Bayern has finally offered a new bid. The report reads like this:
Bayern have submitted a new improved bid for Jonathan Tah, worth €20m fixed plus €5m add-ons. The offer is unlikely to be accepted by Leverkusen, but it shows that Bayern are still determined to sign Tah. Tah has no intention of extending his Leverkusen contract and is still keen to join Bayern. The German international is expected to join Leverkusen’s training camp in Donaueschingen on Sunday [July 28]. An agreement between clubs before that is unlikely.
Bild confirms the news, as captured again by @iMiaSanMia, but adds that Leverkusen’s sporting director Simon Rolfes believes it to be too low. Contrary to prior reports, Bild states that Rolfes expects less than €40 million:
Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes believes Bayern’s new offer for Jonathan Tah is still too low. Rolfes’ current asking price is a €30m package (€25m guaranteed plus €5m add-ons)
This does demonstrate a willingness to negotiate from Leverkusen’s side, which would make a possible deal much more likely. But if Bayern cannot agree a fee with Manchester United for Matthijs de Ligt, then all this negotiating may have end up having been for nothing.
Looking for more thoughts on why Bayern Munich might have lost out on its pursuit of Xavi Simons — and what we learned from it? What about some talk on how fans should be feeling at this point of the preseason? Good, then we have you covered with the latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show. You can get the podcast on Patreon, Spotify, or below: