After the departure of Leroy Sané to Galatasaray, where his contract began at the start of the month, Bayern Munich have announced that Jamal Musiala will take Sané’s iconic number 10, effective as of preseason, after the FIFA Club World Cup.
For anyone who knows football, it is clear what a great honour is now being bestowed upon Musiala, by giving him the most prestigious number in the sport, especially at the very young age of 22, and at one of the greatest clubs in the world.
Yet, there is no doubt that the young playmaker deserves the trust and importance being given to him. Alongside striker Harry Kane, he is arguably the one irreplaceable player at Bayern.
Musiala has already played over 200 competitive matches for the first team of the Bavarians. Despite being one of the most sought-after players in world football, he chose to extend his stay in Munich and sign a contract until 2030.
This indicates that both the club and the player are fully committed to each other, and their future together should be promising indeed. Musiala is certainly good enough to have the future Bayern team built around him.
The Financial Tug-of-War Behind Bayern Munich’s Ambitions
The only question is, how the team would look, given that sporting CEO Max Eberl has recently once again reiterated that the instructions to him from above are that he must save as much money as possible.
There’s certainly nothing wrong with saving money; in fact, this approach has gotten the Bavarians where they are today. They are a club that can boast of its financial health in a manner that few others are able to.
At the same time, though, Bayern Munich want to have their cake and eat it too on this topic. That is to say, they want to save money and also somehow, at the same time, renew and refresh the squad as well.
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Building Around Jamal Musiala Won’t Come Cheap
Given that Bayern Munich are an ambitious club, refreshing the squad to the level they need is quite pricey.
The potential problem that may occur in the not-too-distant future is that building a new squad around Musiala and a few other players will definitely cost money. This may be money that Bayern aren’t prepared to spend.
To keep Musiala, Joshua Kimmich and other pillars of the squad happy, there has to be the incentive and the realistic expectation of winning titles, especially the UEFA Champions League.
That too costs a lot of money. For better or for worse, Bayern do not have a seemingly endless supply of cash available to them.
As a result of the Bundesliga’s 50% + 1 rule, the Bavarians cannot have a billionaire majority owner, such as the likes of Manchester City, Newcastle United, or PSG do.
They therefore must continue to make financially solid decisions, while at the same time also breaking the bank from time to time, like they did with the Kane transfer two summers ago.
Final Thoughts
It is certainly a difficult balancing act, but absent some major Financial Fair Play reform, it is one they will have to continue to perform.
For now, they can spend some time celebrating the romanticism behind Musiala becoming the club’s next number 10.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / HMB-Media
Recording Date: 20.06.2025