Suche
Mein Konto
Cult coach Lienen targets FC Bayern: disrespectful and greedy!
Ewald Lienen criticizes FC Bayern's transfer policy regarding Nick Woltemade in the podcast “Der Sixteener”.
Cult coach Lienen targets FC Bayern: disrespectful and greedy!
The debate about FC Bayern Munich's transfer policy is gaining momentum. Ewald Lienen, a former Bundesliga coach and known from his podcast “Der Sixteener”, took aim at the record champions in a sharp criticism. His comments were triggered by rumors surrounding the potential transfer of Nick Woltemade, a talented 23-year-old player from VfB Stuttgart, to Bayern. Lienen sees Bayern's approach as disrespectful towards other clubs that train players and criticizes Munich's previous dependence on external talent. According to Merkur, Bayern sports director Max Eberl has already made public his interest in Woltemade and talked about transfer fees.
It is reported that VfB Stuttgart is demanding up to 100 million euros for Woltemade, a sum that is considered astronomical. Despite these high demands, Lienen is skeptical and believes that a change is likely. “Bayern traditionally buys the best players from other clubs,” he explained, pointing out that while Bayern have trained some top talent themselves in the past, he believes this offers no excuse for their current transfer strategy.
Criticism of the timing of reporting
Another point that Lienen denounces is the timing of the reporting on Woltemade. In particular, he criticizes the fact that Bayern's interest in the player became known exactly the day before the U21 European Championship final. DFB managing director Andreas Rettig also commented on these circumstances and described the timing as “suboptimal”. The DFB juniors lost the final 2-3 against England, but Rettig emphasized that the fuss surrounding Woltemade was not the reason for the defeat. This is also confirmed by Abendzeitung.
The discussion about transfer practices and transfer fees is not new in the football business. The famous Bosman ruling significantly changed the conditions for player transfers and shifted the balance of power in the players' favor. Before the ruling, clubs could demand transfer fees that were often perceived as too high. After the decision, players became self-employed workers. However, critics such as Klaus Allofs warn of the negative impact on the clubs' financial structures. There are calls to introduce more rights for players and to create transfer caps, an issue that is currently being brought to the EU Commission by the players' union FIFpro. There are also considerations about a possible “Bosman 2 verdict”, as Deutschlandfunk reports.
The question remains what the transfer policy of the big clubs, especially FC Bayern, will look like in the future. With his words, Ewald Lienen initiated an important discussion about the responsibility of the top teams in German football and their relationships with smaller clubs.