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Why Leroy Sané to Bayern Spells Bad News for Ivan Perišić

Bayern Munich have managed to bring Leroy Sané to the club in what looks like a win-win deal. But, there is one major loser here: Ivan Perišić. Let’s see why:

FC Bayern München have completed the signing of Leroy Sané from Manchester City for €49m with a series of performance and trophy-related add-ons. The transfer seems like a win-win for all parties involved, but there is one big loser: Ivan Perišić.

Leroy Sané at Bayern’s Sporting Director, Hasan Salihamidžić’s Office on 02/07/2020

No Place at Bayern

Before the transfer was completed, I made a case for Bayern to wait for another year before signing the German. Among the reasons, there was one which said that Bayern have a good number of talented wingers – the likes of Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman, and Ivan Perišić. Further, Thomas Müller and Alphonso Davies are also capable of filling in, but they are not first choice wingers. With the inclusion of Sané, they have four out-and-out wingers. And obviously, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that they will be competing for two spots only.

The competition is even greater on the left, as Sané himself and Perišić have only been fielded there. Even though Gnabry can play on the right, he mainly prefers the left flank. Now, if you would have to rank these three in terms of quality, most people would put Perišić last.

Gnabry and Sané scheming against Perišić all the way back in 2018. (Photo by Alexandra Beier/Bongarts/Getty Images)

And of course, we must remember that the Croatian is only on loan at Bayern. Bayern have made it clear that they will not pay the €20m which was the amount required for a permanent transfer according to a clause (which has expired) in his loan deal. Inter will have to give a major discount for the move to be permanent, something which the Nerazzurri have not done. All this while, Bayern have not taken a decision on this matter according to their CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

So, the writing is on the wall for Perišić: Bayern do not need him, and do not want him either.

No Place at Inter

If Bayern do not make a move for Perišić, then he will have to return to Inter Milan. That too is not exactly great for the winger.

Inter, under Antonio Conte, have generally fielded a 3-5-2, or at times the more defensive 5-3-2. One thing which this formation does not require is a winger, and unfortunately, that is Perišić’s precise role. His best bet of fitting into the squad will probably be to convert to a wing-back, where he will face competition from Cristiano Biraghi, Kwadwo Asamoah and Ashley Young.

Biraghi’s presence will not make it easy for Perišić to slot into left wing-back. (Photo by Emilio Andreoli/Getty Images)

All of that competition after the 31 year-old adapts to a new position clearly means that he will find little game-time in Milan.

Final Verdict

As you can see, things are not looking great for Ivan Perišić. He’s not wanted at either Bayern or Inter, and there aren’t too many other clubs who would want to pay around €20m for a 31 year-old winger who only has 6 goals and as many assists in 31 appearances this campaign.

A while back, Spurs were said to have made an approach for him, but that has failed according to Calciomercato. However, that was before Bayern said that they wouldn’t pay the full amount. There were also talks about a loan extension with Bayern, but that does not make sense for the same reasons as a permanent transfer.

It seems that Perišić’s future lies out of Munich and Milan, and he’ll have to hope that some other clubs want his signature if he wants to get consistent game-time. Leroy Sané has apparently proven to be the final nail in Perišić’s Bavarian coffin.

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