With Bayern confirming they will be bringing in a new striker in the summer the name of Niclas Füllkrug may not be on the top of many people’s list, but could the Bundesliga’s leading scorer the perfect solution to Bayern’s needs?
Harry Kane? Victor Osimhen? Randal Kolo Muani? All names that instantly find their way to the top of most observer’s shopping list when it comes to signing a big name striker next season. They will however all set Bayern back a massive financial outlay.
At the start of the current season few would have believed Werder Bremen’s Füllkrug would lead the Bundesliga scoring charts, make the German World Cup squad and then become the Nationalmannschaft’s first-choice forward. Now it seems a move to Rekordmeister is not as unimaginable as it once would have seemed.
Speaking to Sky Germany former Bayern captain Lothar Matthäus is one, who believes the Werder forward would be wise signing for the club. “In cost-benefit terms, Niclas Füllkrug is a good option. Get him for €20-25 million and he’d score 25 plus goals in Munich.”
The player himself is rather more relaxed about the stories linking him with the Bavarian giants. When asked whether it would be an honour if Bayern came knocking, he replied. “Nope, I’m pretty relaxed anyway. The whole transfer business doesn’t start until much later. Something else is much more important to me at the moment.
“Discussions with other clubs would prevent me from bringing my performance. In short: I have no pressure. We would also get a new contract from May to the beginning of July – whether with Werder or with another club.
“I will definitely have a longer conversation with Hansi [Flick] about it. The EM is coming up. And I would like to continue to be attractive for the national coach, I would like to continue to fulfil my role there.”
Signing Füllkrug could be the perfect (lower-cost) solution to Bayern’s striker issue. It would allow Mathijs Tel to get some valuable game time with Füllkrug happier than others to give way to the talented French youngster.
There will be fans demanding a ‘big’ name, and doubts will be raised as to whether the 30-year-old Werder striker can mix it in the Champions League, but he’s proved over the past ten months in the Bundesliga and at the World Cup that his best years may yet be ahead of him.
