Bayern Munich Transfer News: Latest on Renato Sanches Exit Rumours

Bayern Munich midfielder Renato Sanches was left out of the squad to face Werder Bremen on Saturday to think about his future amid transfer rumours linking him with Chelsea and Liverpool.

The club's sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic confirmed the news to Sky Sports (via Goal): "He asked the coach to be allowed to think about his future. That's why he is not part of the squad today."

Metro's Sean Kearns also reported the news, pointing to reported interest from both the Blues and the Reds. Bayern beat Werder 2-0 without the Portuguese midfielder.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

According to the report, Chelsea have been working on a possible move for quite some time, with the two clubs discussing matters in pre-season.

For his part, Sanches hasn't given any indication he's looking for a move away from Bavaria and has instead posted updates like this:

It's been a steep drop for Sanches, who arrived in Germany in the summer of 2016 as one of the most wanted young players in the world. The then-18-year-old had just played a starring role for Portugal at UEFA Euro 2016 and appeared to have the world at his feet, opting to join the Bavarian giants over Manchester United, per Kearns.

While his playing time was expected to be limited at the Allianz Arena, many predicted big things for the youngster, including COPA90:

But Sanches didn't just see a drop in playing time after the move―he barely featured for the Bundesliga giants, who spent big on another central midfielder in Corentin Tolisso this summer, further casting doubt on Sanches' future.

As things stand, Sanches' situation is complicated: On the one hand, he's still a very young player who flashed a tremendous amount of talent leading up to last year's transfer.

But at the same time, Bayern seem more than willing to move on from the midfielder after seeing him in training for a full year. Back home, he could barely make it off the bench with the under-21 side at the 2017 European Championships, another indication his tremendous 2015-16 campaign may have been a fluke.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

The Bavarians will want to recoup as much of their transfer fee as possible in case of a sale or opt to let him leave on loan, hoping regular minutes can get his career back on track. A loan may be the ideal solution―he could still make an impact for Bayern.

But the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool won't have any interest in training another club's young talents―for the Premier League giants, it will either be a permanent move or no deal at all.