High-profile sporting director thinks Leeds have signed a ‘really good’ player for just £10m

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Bayern Munich sold Marc Roca to Leeds United this summer and Hasan Salihamidzic has defended that decision.

It has been quite the summer of change for Bayern.

Robert Lewandowski’s incredible spell with the club is over having decided to move on to Barcelona.

Sadio Mane and Matthijs de Ligt have come in as Bayern’s big-money signings whilst Noussair Mazraoui and Mathys Tel have also arrived.

Three draws in a row isn’t ideal form for a club like Bayern but the hope is that this summer will help them continue their success.

Bayern Munich sold Marc Roca

Lewandowski wasn’t the only departure though as Bayern looked to balance the books.

Omar Richards, Chris Richards, Tanguy Nianzou and Joshua Zirkzee were all sold on to Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace, Sevilla and Bologna respectively.

Marc Roca was also sold as Bayern agreed to let him join Leeds United in a deal worth around £10million.

Roca, 25, only joined Bayern back in 2020 having dazzled with Espanyol, the club he spent 12 years with from boy to man.

The Spaniard struggled for first-team action at Bayern though, managing just 15 league appearances for the German giants.

Roca has now moved on to Leeds and immediately become a first-choice player under Jesse Marsch.

Roca’s passing ability has earned real praise and the expectation is that he will continue to play a key role at Elland Road for some time.

Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has now told The Times that Bayern needed to sell fringe players in order to balance their budget a little.

The Bosnian picked out Roca as a specific point of discussion, stating that he didn’t make it Bayern but remains a ‘really good’ and ‘interesting’ player who is now playing an important role for Leeds.

“We tried to get in players who didn’t pose a financial risk but made it possible to generate sales afterwards that allowed us to get some top players in,” said Salihamidzic.

“A player like Marc Roca might not have quite made it but he’s nevertheless a really good player, an interesting player, who’s a starter for Leeds United,” he added.

Salihamidzic is clearly still a huge fan of Roca, and whilst we can’t exactly see Bayern coming back in with a new move for him down the line, Leeds may well face interest in Roca in the future if he continues to shine.