- Bundesliga's "Transfer Deadline Day": Abundance of Speculations, No Major Transactions
The summer clearance sale for professional footballers kicked off with FC Bayern Munich making a clear statement. National player Jonathan Tah wasn't joining, nor was any other player, sports director Max Eberl announced on "Deadline Day," when agents, clubs, and the media were in a frenzy, trying to create facts. Peace prevailed in Munich, while other Bundesliga and 2. Liga clubs dealt with the hectic situation?
Transfer experts seemed the most stressed, consistently sending updates to excited fans via social media. Was multiple national player Mahmoud Dahoud, who was on loan at VfB Stuttgart from Brighton & Hove Albion in the previous round, going to join Eintracht Frankfurt at the last minute? Eintracht Frankfurt confirmed this on Friday evening at 21:00, an hour after the transfer window closed.
Union Berlin caused the most buzz with the most talked-about transfer on "Deadline Day." The managing director of professional football, Horst Heldt, confirmed the departure of Robin Gosens before the game against FC St. Pauli on the streaming service DAZN. "Until 16:30, I was still assuming that Robin would be playing today. Then the message came, and we implemented it," Heldt explained the developments on Friday afternoon. Gosens' destination remained unclear. According to reports, the 30-year-old was moving to AC Florence.
The Tah case
In the end, there were no major sensational transfers. A Tah signature in Munich would have been a step in that direction, especially since the involved parties had also publicly commented recently.
"I felt like I was being dragged through the mud and put in a light that didn't match the behind-the-scenes negotiations," said Eberl, who was approached by Leverkusen's decision-maker Fernando Carro ("Well, I think nothing of Max Eberl, absolutely nothing"). Carro apologized for this – but the transfer of Leverkusen's leading player to Bayern did not happen.
Eberl said he had asked Leverkusen once more at the end of the transfer period in case Bayern could still make a sale and thus generate money for the defender. "Leverkusen did not engage in this," said Eberl: "It's not a big deal, it's discussed, negotiated, tried."
Last-minute reinforcements search
The top Bundesliga teams from Munich, Leverkusen, Dortmund, Stuttgart, and Leipzig had been intensely negotiating in the transfer weeks, so last-moment emergency purchases were no longer necessary. Defender Mohamed Simakan is leaving RB for abroad. According to reports, he is heading to Saudi Arabia. In return, Lutsharel Geertruida from Feyenoord Rotterdam is coming to Leipzig for a transfer fee of around 20 to 25 million euros.
The two Bayern transfers of Michael Olise (53 million) and Joao Palhinha (51 million euros) were the largest investments in the Bundesliga. The most expensive sale is Dani Olmo from Leipzig to Barcelona for an estimated 55 million euros. Leaving Barcelona due to financial struggles, long-time national player Ilkay Gundogan returned to Manchester City.
"Planning the squad is like a puzzle of people with emotions, feelings, strengths, and weaknesses – it's not easy," said Eberl. "I always like to describe it as an orchestra that is put together, and if the flute plays off-key, the whole orchestra will..."
In Madrid, the orchestra of theories is currently witnessing the most dramatic new addition: Kylian Mbappé, whose transfer from Paris Saint-Germain to Real, without any buyout clause, was sealed well before "Deadline Day," hasn't scored a goal in La Liga yet. Real's city rival, Atlético Madrid, secured the services of Argentine World Cup winner Julián Álvarez from Manchester City for around 75 million euros to keep pace with the competition.
Manchester City's Premier League rival, FC Chelsea, was the subject of ridicule for a while, as new players kept joining but no players were leaving. Prominent Belgian Romelu Lukaku made a high-value loss transfer to SSC Napoli just before the final day. "There are neither major upswings nor a trend towards streamlining among the clubs," wrote former Bundesliga manager Fredi Bobic in his "Kicker" column. However, "there are many loans with buy-back options or buy obligations again."
The European Union might express its concern over the high transfer fees in German football, given the financial impact on other sectors. Despite the intense negotiations, no players from top Bundesliga teams like FC Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, VfB Stuttgart, or RB Leipzig joined any team in the European Union during the last transfer window.