In July, Angelo Stiller admitted he might have no choice but to walk away from his boyhood club in search of the regular first-team football he is crying out for.
That was before Bayern Munich signed Marc Roca from Espanyol, Tiago Dantos from Benfica and handed £40 million Frenchman Corentin Tolisso the chance to re-establish himself as a key member of FC Hollywood’s all-star cast.
So no wonder Stiller, who is due to become a free agent in the summer, has put talks over a new contract on hold (Sport1).
The highly rated playmaker hasn’t been included in a single Hansi Flick Bundesliga squad in 2020/21 and, suddenly, those comments from July feel more pertinent than ever.
“I am a Bavarian through and through. Munich is my home but, of course, I have to see where I would be best suited from a sporting perspective,” Stiller told Kicker three months ago.
If Bayern are unable to offer him the pathway he needs, a midfielder who models his game on Toni Kroos and Xabi Alonso won’t be short of offers.
Sport1 adds that Arsenal are watching the situation closely, with Stiller exactly the kind of neat, tidy distributor Mikel Arteta likes in the centre of the park. In short, this is a man with Gunners DNA.
The Sun (12 October, page 61) reported a Wolverhampton Wanderers side that raided Bayern for Meritan Shabani last summer could return to a familiar hunting ground for Stiller too.
And while Munich is home to some of the planet’s finest midfielders, the Bayern faithful already fear this is a departure they will come to regret.
Here’s what some fans have been saying on Twitter about the situation:
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