Uli Hoeneß has strongly rebuked Lothar Matthäus over his comments on Bayern Munich’s transfer activities. At the same time, Bayern’s CFO has pointed to Neymar’s transfer to PSG as a pivotal moment in the evolving transfer market. Hoeneß’s sharp response underscores the tension surrounding Bayern’s dealings. At the same time, the CFO highlights how Neymar’s record-breaking move has significantly influenced current market dynamics.
Uli Hoeneß is fed up with Lothar Matthäus’ remarks about Bayern Munich’s transfer moves and fires back
Lothar Matthäus isn’t afraid to share his opinions on football matters, particularly regarding his former team, Bayern Munich. However, Uli Hoeneß, who can match or even exceed Matthäus in speaking out, has taken issue with the 61-year-old’s comments on Bayern’s transfer activities and has responded sharply:
“If I have to read Lothar Matthäus’ nonsense every day, it’s starting to get on my nerves. I’m sure we will have a team that can win the title. If our players play the football that Bayern Munich can play and don’t lose after going 2-0 up like in Heidenheim and Hoffenheim, then things will be different next year.”
The 72-year-old also denied saying that new players would only be signed if others were sold. “That’s total nonsense. That’s exactly what the Bild newspaper is. I did not speak out in authority. I announced what the supervisory board of FC Bayern had decided. And all of you, including Lothar Matthäus, cannot read. And cannot listen,” Hoeneß said.
“There’s a resolution by the supervisory board that says: We have spent €125m, and for new players to come after that, players have to be sold first. I communicated that. And it’s not my dictum, but the dictum of the supervisory board in its entirety. And you must learn, learn to listen and to write the truth. This is a very, very big problem for you, year in, year out. I don’t want to say anything more about that.”
To provide context, Hoeneß was addressing Lothar’s latest comments made to Sport Bild: “Just as Uli Hoeneß made Kane more expensive a year ago with his statements about Tottenham, he’s now making his own players cheaper with his public statements about player sales.”
Bayern’s CFO points to Neymar’s transfer to PSG as a key factor in the “complex” state of the transfer market
Real Madrid claimed another Champions League title in a rather unconventional manner. At the same time, Arsenal FC suffered such a heavy defeat to Bayern Munich that they chose to step away from the Champions League for a while. Meanwhile, Neymar’s move from FC Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain for €222 million set a new record, making him the most expensive transfer ever and challenging traditional ideas about transfer fees. Nine-digit transfer fees were uncommon at the time, but they are now becoming more frequent.
In an interview with Tz, Bayern’s CFO Michael Diederich discussed how €100 million transfers seemed unimaginable ten years ago. He discussed the market’s evolution over the past decade and speculated on its future trends. Diederich identified Neymar’s transfer as the key driver behind these recent changes in the market: “The Neymar transfer from Barcelona to Paris broke all barriers. The market is complex and is becoming more and more complex. And there are inflationary tendencies that are not necessarily good for the sport. Could we afford big fees? In very well-founded individual cases, yes. Do we want to? Only if there’s a really special need. With Harry Kane, it was clear to us.”
Just a decade ago, it was unthinkable that clubs would regularly spend over €100 million on a single player. It raises the question of how astronomical transfer fees might become in the next ten years—or if the football market bubble might finally burst by then.
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