MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich has reportedly agreed a deal with Bayer Leverkusen to take Germany defender Jonathan Tah to the Club World Cup.
Kicker magazine and other media outlets reported Saturday that Bayern, which had announced Tah’s signing “without a transfer fee” on May 29, has agreed to pay Leverkusen up to 4 million euros ($4.6 million) for the player to take a full part in the Club World Cup starting in the United States on June 14.
The agreement is based on a fixed fee of 800,000 euros ($910,000) with additional payments linked to success at the Club World Cup potentially taking the fee up to 4 million euros, Kicker reported.
Tah’s contract with Leverkusen ran to the end of June, meaning he could only join Bayern on a free transfer from July 1 – unless the clubs came to an agreement beforehand.
Bayern plays Auckland City in Cincinnati on June 15, then Boca Juniors in Miami on June 20, before facing Benfica in Charlotte on June 24.
There was little goodwill between Bayern and Leverkusen after Bayern’s failed attempt to sign Tah – Leverkusen’s captain – last season, when Leverkusen chief executive Fernando Carro lashed out against Bayern’s Max Eberl. Bayern’s public pursuit of Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz this season further inflamed tensions between the rival clubs.
Any agreement to let Tah join Bayern before his Leverkusen contract ends would suggest pragmatism has won out at Leverkusen.
Real Madrid set the precedent by paying a reported fee of up to 10 million euros ($11.4 million) to get England right back Trent Alexander-Arnold out of his Liverpool contract one month before it was due to expire so he could play at the Club World Cup, rather than waiting to sign him with a transfer fee.
Bayern will also need to reach agreement with Hoffenheim if it wants to take Tom Bischof to the tournament.
Leverkusen faces a summer of rebuilding following Xabi Alonso’s departure as coach, Tah and wing back Jeremie Frimpong ’s departures for Bayern and Liverpool, respectively, and Wirtz’s expected transfer to Liverpool.
Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka suggested Friday he would be open to a switch amid reported interest from AC Milan, a change from his previous position.
Leverkusen hired former Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag to replace the Real Madrid-bound Alonso, while it has also signed highly rated teenager Ibrahim Maza from second-division club Hertha Berlin, and 21-year-old defender Tim Oermann from relegated Bochum before promptly loaning him to Austrian champion Sturm Graz. It also loaned promising midfielder Francis Onyeka to Bochum for next season in the second division.
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The Associated Press
