Leverkusen yet to surrender on Tah saga after Bayern snub

After yesterday’s goalless draw in Leverkusen, Christopher Freund rules out Bayern from clubs interested in Jonathan Tah. Meanwhile, Fernando Carro believes the champions are still in the race.

Back in the summer, Jonathan Tah was very close to joining record champions FC Bayern. Instead, the German international ended up staying at Bayer Leverkusen for the last year of his current contract.

On Saturday, Tah’s Leverkusen faced Bayern for the third time this season. The 29-year-old was picked as the man of the match for the second time in these duels while Xabi Alonso retained his unbeaten run against Bayern. 

Prior to the game, Bayern’s sports director Christoph Freund makes the club’s stance clear on Tah’s file. “That is not an issue for us at the moment. You can see that our defense is doing well at the moment. That is why we are very, very happy at the moment.”

Four and a half months before the end of his contract, the center-back is yet to decide on his future. While Spanish media reports his full agreement with FC Barcelona, Leverkusen are yet to throw in the towels on the defender who spent ten years with Die Werkself.

Fernando Carro, CEO of Bayer Leverkusen, talks about his dream of extending with Tah in his appearance at the Sky 90 show. “He’s taking it easy. I really believe that he hasn’t made up his mind 100 percent yet. I know that he would like to have an experience somewhere else. We all know that.” says Carro before confirming the club’s plans. “But, in the end, if he doesn’t find anything that convinces him, he can always stay at home with us.”

That sentiment is also shared by the player after yesterday’s game. “I currently still live in Düsseldorf and am very happy to be able to drive to the BayArena every day for training. We’ll see about everything else,” Tah says. He also gives the biggest credit to Alonso for the team’s excellent performance against Bayern. “It has to be said that the coach always has the right instinct.”

Former Leverkusen defender and current Germany U16 assistant coach Jens Nowotny recently talked about a move to a club outside the Bundesliga as “a logical move” for Tah at this point of his career.