“Manchester United is bigger”: Marcel Sabitzer back at Bayern Munich

The hint of whereabouts was followed by an unadorned farewell: Last Wednesday, Manchester United fans were still able to have the number 15 and the lettering “Sabitzer” flocked onto the brand-new Red Devils shirt in their club’s online shop. Two days later that was done.

England’s record champions said goodbye to the Austrian on Friday with a quatrain on the homepage and wrote that Marcel Sabitzer was returning to Bayern Munich after his loan. The midfielder had a brace against Sevilla in the Europa League and previously scored against Fulham in the FA Cup. “But he missed the season finale because of knee problems,” was the final sentence. No more good wishes, instead boring facts.

So United decided against signing Sabitzer on a permanent basis: the club’s transfer priorities are currently elsewhere. The former Leipzig player returns to Bayern Munich as planned. However, this should not last forever either.

Marcel Sabitzer: “Manchester United is bigger than Bayern Munich”

Sabitzer’s commitment to United had a promising start after the surprising transfer on Deadline Day (January 31). The now 29-year-old should fill the void left by Christian Eriksen’s injury in midfield. Sabitzer started three times in the first four games in the Premier League and was convincing.

Team manager Erik ten Hag enthused: “He’s doing fantastic. He’s adapted to Manchester United and the Premier League in a flash. He’s a great person and fits in very well with our team.” In general, Sabitzer is an “intelligent player” who fills his role well.

However, then obviously not good enough to recommend for a permanent stay in third place in the Premier League. He prefers to pay a horrendous sum for Mason Mount from Chelsea.

Aside from his two-goal triumph against Sevilla, Sabitzer often played decently but rarely excelled. Four scorer points in 18 games before said meniscus injury are not really great either.

Marcel Sabitzer: Statistics at Manchester United

Sabitzer himself would have liked to have stayed in Manchester. At least that’s what his statements say sky close when he described how much “bigger” United is than his actual employer: “I’ve experienced a lot in my career, including Bayern Munich. But everything is bigger here. There are more people who take care of you . Everyone is crazy about Manchester United.” He is “enjoying” his time in England and is “proud” to be part of the club.

Marcel Sabitzer is a candidate for sale at Bayern Munich

Now the right foot is a Bayern player again. At least at first. Hard to imagine that this will still be the case on September 1st when the transfer window in Germany closes.

Even before moving to Manchester, Sabitzer was only a part-time employee in Munich. Under ex-coach Julian Nagelsmann he only completed four of 24 games over the full distance.

Now the competition in central midfield is even greater: Konrad Laimer is a national teammate from RB Leipzig and the club bosses want another top-class player to join them.

Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka are still firmly scheduled, as is Ryan Gravenberch, who regularly complains about too little playing time. So you don’t have to be a prophet to foresee that Sabitzer will leave the club despite a contract that runs until 2026.

FC Bayern: Besiktas should be interested in Marcel Sabitzer

There are already a few loose rumors regarding his possible new employer. On the one hand, there are the Roma, who loudly Calciomercato is said to have had an eye on Sabitzer. And loud of course Sports FC Barcelona, ​​who has been linked to pretty much every midfielder since the departure of Sergio Busquets ohnrhin.

Much more surprising was the report last weekend that the Turkish top club Besiktas Sabitzer was also on the list. Talks about a possible change are planned for this week, it said fanaticism.

It is clear that Besiktas will add to the midfield in the coming weeks. The loss of substance there has been great in recent weeks: club legend Atiba Hutchinson said goodbye to Istanbul after nine years. Alexandru Maxim, who played 36 competitive games in the previous season and scored 15 points, is no longer there.

The misunderstanding with ex-supertalent Dele Alli ended prematurely a few months ago, and the Englishman returned to Everton.

Besiktas wants to hit the transfer market in the summer

Sabitzer’s profile would undoubtedly be a suitable player for the 4-1-4-1 or 4-2-3-1 practiced by coach Senol Günes. He could play eighth or in a more advanced position behind the striker, as he did surprisingly often under Erik ten Hag in Manchester.

With his dynamism and shooting power, it doesn’t take much imagination to imagine Sabitzer as a dominant box-to-box player in the Süper Lig. A duo with him and Gedson Fernandes should mean the best engine room in the league.

The Black Eagles ended last season in third place, ten points behind champions Galatasaray. It is the declared goal to win the title in the coming season, Vice President Emre Kocadag announced a transfer offensive a few days ago fanaticism already on.

He explained: “The championship in the league is our top priority. But there is also the Turkish Cup and the Conference League. With our squad reinforcements we will be among the contenders in the Conference League.” “At least four or five transfers will be made,” emphasized Kocadag.

Financially, however, a Sabitzer commitment would be quite a feat. According to Fabrizio Romano, FC Bayern is asking for a fee of 15 to 17 million euros for the vice-captain of the Austrian national team if it is sold this summer. So roughly the amount that the Reds transferred to Leipzig for him in 2021.

A hefty sum for Besiktas, considering that the Black Eagles’ previous record purchase of eight million euros (Rodrigo Tabata, 2009) cost around half that. Should something actually become concrete between Sabitzer and Istanbul, a loan would be the more likely model.