Bayern Munich closing in on Barcelona target’s renewal

In what could be a big blow to Barcelona, Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer has confirmed that the team recently held talks with star striker Robert Lewandowski and that the second part of it is already scheduled.

Lewandowski, 33, is firmly linked with a move to Barcelona and previous reports have even claimed that the forward has already agreed a three-year deal with the Catalan team.

Contrary to the claims, however, Hainer said that the team is in constant touch with the Poland international and are trying to reach an agreement soon.

“A conversation took place with Lewandowski, and a second one is scheduled. The talks will continue,” Hainer was quoted as saying by Fabrizio Romano.

A lot has been said about Lewandowski in the past, but in reality, Bayern seem to have more or less confirmed they want him to continue, at least, for the foreseeable future.

Hainer’s comments come after Bayern CEO Oliver Kahn hinted that their star frontman does want to explore new opportunities especially after spending his entire career in German Bundesliga. 

Speaking in an interview with Sport1, Kahn said,

“Of course, players like that [Lewandowski] sometimes think about trying something else and it takes time to convince them.” 

“There are also financial aspects to consider, and as a club you have to think about how to manage that because FC Bayern have suffered from the pandemic in the last two years,” he added.

It must be noted that Lewandowski has a contract until 2023 and will only continue at Bayern if they are willing to offer a three-year deal; which is something that they aren’t prepared for. 

If not, he will simply ask Bayern to consider offers coming from outside of the Bundesliga. This is when Barcelona will make their appearance.

However, nothing is as smooth as it seems. Since Lewandowski still has a contract running for another year, Bayern will definitely ask for a hefty transfer fee which is said to be in the region of €60 million.

This represents a massive investment for any team let alone Barcelona, especially for a player who will be 34 next year. Hence, it remains to be seen whether or not there is any substance to claims, as one can just expect Barcelona to look away if that is, in fact, the case.