Lucas Hernandez has made it clear to Bayern Munich that he wants to leave the club this summer to be able to join Paris Saint-Germain in his native country of France. Bayern was facing a crucial period with the defender as his current contract with the club is set to expire next summer, so they had to make a decision going into this summer’s transfer window; give him an extension or sell him.
Hernandez made his intentions quite clear and it’s now only a matter of time before PSG submits an official bid for the French international. They’re just trying to figure out what to do with both Juan Bernat and Layvin Kurzawa before they make an official move for the defender, which Bayern might have already found a replacement for in SSC Napoli’s Kim Min-jae.
For what it’s worth, the heavy interest from PSG in Hernandez seemed to have popped out of nowhere after the Bundesliga season ended as all indicators before said interest was reported seemed to suggest the player was getting set to negotiate a new deal with Bayern. He’d missed a great deal of the season due to the knee injury he suffered with France at the World Cup in Qatar, but he had been performing consistently well for Bayern beforehand in the Hinrunde. He was in favor with Julian Nagelsmann, but never had the chance to play under Thomas Tuchel.
Former Bayern and Germany midfielder Lothar Matthäus hasn’t taken too kindly to Hernandez’s change of heart in wanting to leave Bayern for PSG so abruptly. If it were up to the Bayern and Germany legend, the club would be selling Hernandez immediately. “I’d sell him immediately. He obviously has no appreciation left towards the club. It’s true he always showed mentality on the pitch, but he was also injured several times over months. As a player, you have to remember that & stay loyal,” he recently ranted for Sky (via @iMiaSanMia).
It’s impossible to be able to tell what’s gone on behind the scenes at Bayern for Hernandez, but there’s certainly a lot of variables that can be playing in to his decision to want to leave this summer. It’s possible that he’s worried about being out of favor with Tuchel and also plausible that he did not like the sacking of Hasan Salihamidzic, who would’ve been one of the chief architects alongside Oliver Kahn in negotiating a potential new deal for him this summer. It’s already come out that a handful of Bayern players didn’t appreciate the constant criticism throughout the season from the board and front office, so it’s a realistic possibility that Hernandez was one of those handful of players.
