(Football news) Bayern Munich's sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has confirmed the signing of Ajax right-back Noussair Mazroui. He will join the German champions on a deal until 2026 for free. Barcelona had scouted the Morocco international for a long time in the past but the player made his mind up to play for the current German Champions.
Bayern has managed to beat the intense competition from FC Barcelona to sign the 24-year-old right-back. Few reports in the past couple of weeks have stated that Manchester United also showed interest in the fullback, especially with the imminent arrival of Erik Ten Hag this summer. Eventually, Bayern have managed to come up with a lucrative financial package and along with their sporting project, convinced the player to join Bayern. Mazraoui has been an integral part of Erik Ten Hag’s success with Ajax over the past years. The Moroccan has great qualities on and off the ball and can play a huge role in Bayern’s build-up play from the back, which has been very underwhelming under Nagelsmann’s first season. Most importantly, Mazraoui will add that attacking edge in the final third and make Bayern dangerous from both the flanks as Alphonso Davis and Mazraoui can form a lethal full back combination.
In the past three seasons, Benjamin Pavard has been used as a right-back in Bayern but the French defender has delivered solid performances in the centre defence. However, whenever he played at right back the team often lacked sharpness in the final third on the right side. Salihamidzic in his interview also confirmed that Pavard is likely to play in central defence next season. He mentioned that Pavard would be a vital player next season which confirms that Noussair Mazraoui is likely to become the first choice right-back from next season,
Pavard will mostly act as a makeshift replacement to the departing Niklas Sule in the centre-back department of the squad. Meanwhile, Bayern is also close to completing a deal for Mazraoui’s teammate Ryan Gravenberch. The Bavarian club had reportedly agreed a fee with the Ajax young midfielder but due to some fee negotiations the transfer had stalled but now a reported fee of 30 million has been agreed upon. Gravenberch will likely replace Corentin Tolisso at Bayern who might leave next season especially after he didn’t sign a new contract with the club.
Hasan Salihamidzic expressed his satisfaction over getting this deal over the line for Die Roten. “He’s a player who has performed really well in recent years. He’s someone who brings something refreshing – We know how tough the right-back market is”
“He’s the type of player that was wanted by all of Europe. We’re very happy that he decided to go with us in the next few years. There are still a few things to complete. But he’s a player who will help us and strengthen our team.”
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