Amid Constant Speculation, Who Should Bayern Munich Sell This Summer?

Bayern Munich are under attack. Not by UEFA, the DFB or even the club’s millions of fans. No, the Bavarian club are under attack from the European media.

Over the past week, a number of stories have bubbled to the surface across the mainstream media depicting the German champions as a royal mess ahead of their new season and the coming domestic and European challenges of the 2015/16 campaign.

According to reports, Mario Gotze has been tempted to foreign lands after his agent lambasted Bayern’s treatment of the young star, Mehdi Benatia has been chatted up by Italian giants Juventus and Thomas Muller is on the cusp of moving on after a bust-up with manager Pep Guardiola.

But just which of these stories is real and perhaps even beyond that? Which of these players should Bayern actually sell if the rumours are indeed believed to be true?

Let’s begin with Gotze, who—for the most part—has been just short of a disaster since signing for the club in April 2013 for €37 million.

Speaking to Bild am Sonntag (h/t Marc Williams of the Daily Star), Gotze’s agent, Volker Struth, stated that his client would have been a better player at the club had he been supported by Bayern’s team.

Such news then prompted the English paper to suggest Manchester United and Arsenal were hot on Gotze’s heels, noting that they had admired the former Borussia Dortmund star for quite some time.

So should Bayern sell? Although such comments never truly suggest any situation has or will change, there is a growing resentment between the club and the player that few outside of the Allianz Arena can continue to ignore.

Guardiola’s system simply doesn’t seem to facilitate the traditional No. 10s in his squad, and Gotze has had to play on the wings when Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben have picked up injuries.

If an offer of any substance did come in for the attacking midfielder, Bayern would almost certainly knock it back straight away. Those at the top of the Bavarian hierarchy still favour the German starlet, and most appreciate that his time will probably come long after Guardiola has moved on to his next project.

But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t sell him. The 23-year-old has often proven to be a frustrating and ineffective member of the Bayern first team, and if his sale could release funds for a bid on someone like Angel Di Maria in the short term, at the very least, then it seems like a no-brainer.

The next star who has seemingly loosened his grip on a career-long term at Bayern is Muller, who has been linked with a move away from the club after supposedly having a bust-up with his own manager.

According to a Bild report (h/t Simon Jones of the Daily Mail) the German forward fell out with his coach during a heated training exercise, leading to an outburst from 25-year-old shouting, "Fine! So I may as well just stop now and go back inside!"

This follows a similar situation last season, which again showed Muller to be short of temper and rarely bothered about letting anyone around him know all about it, yet such a story offers little to suggest the forward is actually poised to leave the club.

The Daily Mail have suggested that Manchester United are more than interested, with manager Louis van Gaal remaining a big fan of the Bundesliga goalscorer, yet it would take a truly astronomical fee to allow Bayern to part ways with one of their favourite sons—even if he doesn’t get on with Guardiola all the time.

The final player linked with a move away from Munich this week is central defender Benatia, who has told the Italian press that he has been “honoured” by Juventus’ interest in his services.

The former Roma star told Tuttosport (h/t Football Italia) that he was “honoured by interest from Juventus and Real Madrid.” He added, “If Bayern Munich can’t promise consistency, I could leave.”

Such news will of course grate against a large proportion of the Bayern faithful who have remained patient with the Moroccan defender since his arrival last summer. Although Benatia transferred from Italy for a considerable sum, he hasn’t exactly lived up to the hype that followed him to Munich.

The quotes in the Italian press will do little to improve Benatia’s situation at Bayern. There’s no denying that Guardiola considers Jerome Boateng the first-choice defender in his side, and when Holger Badstuber is fit, he has always been considered his partner at the heart of Bayern’s defence.

The simple truth of the matter is that Benatia hasn’t received the regular, consistent football he thinks he deserves in Germany because he hasn’t offered regular, consistent performances. This is a defender who certainly has the talent to thrive in Guardiola’s system yet simply hasn’t taken to the task.

At this point, with Bayern likely to strengthen their defence before the new season, a deal to allow Benatia to leave would make sense. The Moroccan may well turn in to a fantastic player for Bayern, but chances are he’ll spend another season sitting on the bench in a huff. Should Juventus arrive with the right offer, Bayern would be wise to cash in on this player before he causes more problems.

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