Bayern Munich football club aspires to be the best always, even in times of crisis, and this may suggest bad news for Brazilian Philip Coutinho loaned to the team from Barcelona.
Major transfers in Europe are expected to diminish this year after the patrols were suspended due to the Coruna virus epidemic and club economic crises. But Bayern is still bold.
"We want to strengthen our team with great talent from Europe, and to bring in an international star for Bayern Munich, which will raise the quality of the team and help to provide exciting and profitable football to the fans," Bayern Munich sports director Hassan Saleh Hamidic told the newspaper Welt am Sonntag.
Brazilian playmaker Coutinho was supposed to be the international star when he was loaned to Bayern Munich from Barcelona in August. Coutinho's career in Spain faltered after she was thriving with Liverpool, but his performance in Bayern was not convincing.
Now the player underwent ankle surgery, and since there is a lack of vision to resume the Bundesliga competitions, due to the outbreak of the Coruna virus, the player may have already played his last games with the German league title holder.
Bayern's Coutinho loan loan expires on June 30, and it seems unlikely that, according to Hamidic, Bayern Munich will activate the 120-million-euro (130 million dollars) purchase option.
Even if there was a significant discount in the player's price during the Corona virus times, it probably wouldn't change anything. Coutinho, 27, may get a slight farewell even though he wore the No. 10 shirt, just eight months after Areen Robin retired.
Bayern had been ruthless in the past, as James Rodriguez borrowed from Real Madrid, before deciding not to buy it due to a volatile performance like Coutinho currently.
Coutinho's main problem in Bayern Munich is Thomas Muller's recovery. Muller suffered badly last season and was excluded from the German national team. But he was amazing this season, as he leads the list of goal-makers in the Bundesliga after he has made 16 goals.
Clearly, Bayern coach Hansi Flick favored Muller, which appeared when the 30-year-old won a new contract until 2023.
Bayern Munich focuses on other players, who need to extend their contracts, rather than securing the contract with Coutinho.
The contracts of Thiago Alcantara, David Alaba and Commander Manuel Noir expire in 2021, and negotiations with Neuer became complicated, especially with the inclusion of Schalke keeper Alexander Noble in Bayern next July.
It is not just that Coutinho has struggled to cope with the German League. Coutinho did not start the match Bayern beat Chelsea 3 / zero in the first leg of the Champions League round sixteen. Now the media, whose name has been strong, has been linked to the transition to Chelsea.
But there is another place where he can return - his original club Barcelona.
"I love him very much. In principle, he is a player made for Barcelona," Kiki Sittin, who took over as Barcelona after loaning Coutinho, told Spain's RAC radio recently.
Bayern Munich may be looking for a big name, but it seems that the Corona virus epidemic will continue to restrict spending on transfers in different leagues. A return to Barcelona may be the likely option for Coutinho.