As per a statement released by the German champions, Sabitzer is given a four-year contract and will wear the No. 18 jersey.
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German champions Bayern Munich have confirmed the signing of Austrian attacker Marcel Sabitzer from RB Leipzig on Monday. Sabitzer has consistently performed in the Bundesliga for a number of years now and gives the German champions a new dynamic option in the attacking department. The signing definitely comes as a bit of a surprise since Leipzig were Bayern’s closest title challengers last season. There is not enough time in the transfer window to find a suitable replacement for the attacker, and Leipzig might very well find their team significantly weakened without one of their key players. It is even more surprising since Sabitzer was the RB Leipzig captain.
As per a statement released by the German champions, Sabitzer is given a four-year contract and will wear the No. 18 jersey. The 27-year-old, who is currently in the prime of his career, will be reunited with former Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann and defender Dayot Upamecano, who also joined Bayern from Leipzig over the summer. For Leipzig, however, the current season seems to be an extremely difficult one without their star man. They had finished second in last year’s Bundesliga, finishing above the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Borussia Monchengladbach, and VFL Wolfsburg.
Reportedly, Bayern will be paying around 15 million euros for Sabitzer, who joined Leipzig from Rapid Vienna in 2014 and quickly went on to become a key player for the Saxony-based club. He was part of the team that managed to reach two German Cup finals, qualify for the Champions League, and establish itself as one of Germany’s best in a relatively short period of time.
Sabitzer scored 32 goals in 145 Bundesliga appearances for Leipzig, four in 21 Champions League appearances, and seven in 18 German Cup games. Naturally, Leipzig wanted their skipper to stick around for a while longer. At 27, however, it is perhaps better for a player of Sabitzer’s talent to play at a club that can potentially win everything there is to win in Europe, including the UEFA Champions League. The Austrian declined the club’s offer of a contract extension and could have left without a transfer fee next year.
“As a child, my Bayern kit was my pride and joy,” Sabitzer was quoted as saying. “I got a new one at Christmas every year. I’ll give everything for this club, I want to win as many matches as possible and, of course, collect lots of titles,” he added. The 27-year-old is one of the most important players in the Austrian national side as well. He was a part of the recently concluded Euros. Austria were knocked out in the round of 16 by eventual champions, Italy. Sabitzer has scored eight goals in 54 appearances for Austria so far.
Bayern has long signed its closest rivals’ best players. The Bavarian powerhouse dealt Borussia Dortmund a blow in 2013 when it signed Mario Gotze, signed Robert Lewandowski in 2014, and convinced captain Mats Hummels to join in 2016. With RB Leipzig rising to power, Bayern might well have found their new hunting ground.
