As is well known, Manuel Neuer’s contract expires at the end of the season, and it was recently unclear whether or how the 40-year-old would continue. Now there are increasing signs that Neuer would extend his contract.
At the beginning of the year, Manuel Neuer had already stated that he wanted to see “how things develop over the next few months” and would “finally decide” what he was planning at the end of March or beginning of April. What is certain is that he wants to end his professional career in Munich, so a move abroad is out of the question for him.
After his gala performance in Madrid, Bayern’s sporting director Max Eberl said that Neuer “doesn’t need to make any more big arguments. He should just stay healthy, stay courageous. And then we’ll sit down”, also saying that they wanted to wait for the games in April.
Neuer signals willingness to continue
April is now almost over – and Sky is reporting that the 40-year-old will not end his career this summer, but would rather extend his contract with FC Bayern, which expires at the end of June, by a further year.
And Bild also reports that the five-time world goalkeeper (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020) is said to have indicated that he wants to continue playing – and that he is prepared to hand over more games to deputy Jonas Urbig. The 22-year-old is to continue to be developed as Neuer’s legitimate successor at Säbener Straße.
On Thursday, Neuer’s advisor Thomas Kroth and Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen and Eberl are said to have held an initial meeting at Säbener Straße to start negotiations. In addition to playing time, the goalkeeper’s salary is also likely to be discussed, as the 40-year-old is currently one of the team’s top earners.
Neuer, who came to Munich from FC Schalke in the summer of 2011, is currently in his 15th season at FC Bayern. During this time, he has won the treble twice (2013 and 2020) and could repeat this feat once again this season. The 2014 world champion has played an incredible 596 games for the record champions to date.