article-image

Not even €200m would take Olise to Liverpool, says Bayern chief Hoeness

4
0
Clock Icon1 HoursFootball

Bayern Munich's honorary president Uli Hoeness says not even €200m would be enough for Liverpool to bring Michael Olise to Anfield this summer. 

A potential move to Merseyside has been mooted for Olise, after it was announced on Tuesday that Mohamed Salah would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season. 

Salah has reportedly come to an agreement with the club that will allow him to leave on a free transfer, despite only signing a new two-year contract extension last year. 

The 33-year-old's impending exit means Liverpool must find a way to replace the Egyptian, who has netted 255 goals in 435 appearances for the club in all competitions.

And Olise has been the standout candidate, with the former Crystal Palace forward excelling since making his switch to the Bundesliga two years ago. 

Among players in Europe's top five leagues, only Bayern team-mate Harry Kane (53) and Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe (43) have more goal involvements than Olise's 39 in all competitions this season.

And Hoeness does not expect Olise to depart at the end of this campaign.

"Liverpool have already spent €500m this year and are having a very poor season. We won't contribute to them playing better next year," Hoeness told reporters. 

"We play this game for our fans. We have 430,000 members, we have millions of fans.

"And it doesn't help them much if we have €200m in the bank but we play worse football every Saturday because of it."

Olise is under contract until 2029 but reportedly has no release clause in his deal, with the France international also attracting interest from Real Madrid. 

Bayern's director of sport, Max Eberl, also shut down a future Olise departure during an interview with Sport Bild, saying: "We’re not even wasting a thought on that. 

"He is a Bayern Munich player and has every opportunity here that top players could wish for. We want to shape the future with him."

Chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen echoed the same sentiment, adding: "No matter which club tries to turn his head, anyone playing for Bayern knows what they have here.

"We compete for titles, and that is the most important thing for exceptional players like him. For this type of player, it’s about winning trophies.

"There are not many clubs where you can do that, and we are certainly one of them. That’s why I am completely convinced that Michael knows what he has with us."

Liverpool's hopes of signing Olise may also be hindered if they fail to qualify for the Champions League, with the Reds currently fifth in the Premier League table. 

After a 2-1 defeat to Brighton last time out, Liverpool have now lost 10 Premier League games in a season for the first time since 2015-16 (also 10).