Thiago to Bayern – Full story behind the rumor

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For the past few weeks, it’s been all “Thiago set for MUFC” in the press.  Sport, a newspaper in Spain, put Thiago on their front page photoshopped onto a United jersey. They believed the transfer saga was all over and Thiago would sign in the coming days.  However, nothing has been announced yet. So what are the new developments then?

Well, according to Cadena COPE, a Spanish radio station, there’s been a drastic turn of events.  A journalist by the name of Juanma Castaño stated that Thiago is now set for Bayern. He further went on to say the deal was concluded and that it would be confirmed in a matter of hours.  Below is a translated version of the interview Castaño & another reporter, Manolo Iama, had with Cadena COPE. A very big thank you to Jonas Giaevara(@CheGiaevara), Tom Coast (@sardinetrawler), and @securegb for translating to the best of their abilities. We appreciate their work!

Note: They have not been able to talk to Mazinho or Thiago’s agent, Pere Guardiola.

Castaño: “This is from a very credible source, a source that is, let’s say, directly linked to the footballer. First, we have been told that Thiago Alcantara’s future is not at Barca. Second, we have been told the club he has chosen. The club Thiago has chosen is Bayern Munich.”

The host of Cadena COPE show “El Partido de las 12” asks Castaño why Thiago has chosen Bayern Munich.

Castaño: “There are various factors. There have been several offers on the table. From Manchester United & Real Madrid.  Then there’s the one from Bayern Munich. Thiago didn’t know if he’d play too much at Barca.  The bid from Real Madrid was rejected because Thiago does not want to close any doors on a return to Barca in the future. Therefore the two offers on the table from Bayern Munich and Manchester United. Thiago considerd both closely.  Thiago knew that there were several players in his position, but was told by Pep Guardiola on the phone that he was moving Javi Martinez to centre back as Marcelo Bielsa did with him at Athletic Bilbao.  Therefore, there was a spot for in the midfield for Thiago Alcantara. I’m being told the deal is absolutely closed and can be confirmed in a matter of hours.  However, I insist, all this has to be taken with the precaution that with this news it is the summer.”

Castaño then goes on to say something to the effect of “I’m panicking” before being interrupted by the host. According to Tom Coast, Castaño said, “All this makes me panic a bit, talking about breaking news”

Host: “No no, you’re saying what we know. You know that Thiago Alcanatara has chosen Bayern Munich. We wouldn’t report this unless we actually knew this.”  The host then brings in Manolo who talks about Thiago and Pep.

Manolo (paraphrased by Tom Coast & securegb): He says that he  trusts the news because it comes from Juanma Castaño and from trustworthy sources. He then goes on to say 2 FCB directors have told him 10 days ago Thiago was Bayern-bound.  Then he mentions that he got a text from FCB (barca) official stating “I don’t know if there is any movement in the last few hours”.  He also mentioned that Pep Guardiola said that no one would leave Barcelona unless they were kicked out or wanted to win somewhere else.  The only time Manolo mentions MUFC is when talking about the fact that Thiago’s name was not brought up in David Moyes’ press conference.

Then Castaño comes back to reiterate his points.

Castaño: He states that the points he made were only first part of the information. He couldn’t get more. “I would like to remind you that I’ve been given a part of information that doesn’t include Guardiola (pere, not pep) or Mazinho’s opinions. Meaning, that if there’s another part to this, then that’s great. This is the information that I have. This is what they tell me. It’s decided. It could be closed. The destination is Bayern Munich. He’ll earn  four million euros a year”  After saying this, he then goes back to repeating that this is what he’s been told and he hasn’t spoken to Mazinho or Pere Guardiola.

The three translators summarize their thoughts on the show and seemingly come to the consensus that the situation is delicate but it doesn’t add up as there would be still be question marks over Thiago’s playing time.  Keep in mind Bayern have Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Robben, Gotze, Ribery, Muller, Can in midfield and that’s excluding Javi Martinez.

That’s the full story on where the Thiago to Bayern rumor originated.  What it means, I am not sure. We don’t know how reliable these journalists are. Their reputation can be questioned since the radio station has been fined by Barcelona for false accusations on doping.  Their claims could be true but the impression I got from the translated version makes me think there are some holes in this story. I will cover some of my own thoughts in the following article which will focus on my personal thoughts about this rumor. I wanted to keep my thoughts separate from this article. I am sure some of our readers would rather read what’s been translated first before reading through my personal views.

Thanks for reading.

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