Bundesliga News

Uli Hoeneß:
EPL clubs 'blackmail' on Thiago, Alaba's agent a 'greedy piranha'

By Peter Weis   @PeterVicey

If there's one thing German football fans can rely on, it's that former Bayern München club president Uli Hoeneß will continue to say precisely what he feels so long as he draws breath.

One of the football's most outspoken figures weighed in on the Thiago Alcantara and David Alaba situations during the country's famous Sunday footballing roundtable.
Uli Hoeness.
Uli Hoeness.Photo: Valentin Groß, CC BY-SA 4.0
Any notion that Uli Hoeneß would step out of the limelight following his resignation as president of FC Bayern München seemed laughable to most Germans. The country’s most reliable supplier of blunt footballing talk still lets the opinions flow. Despite merely being a club board member, Hoeneß pulled zero punches when discussing Bayern personnel moves on the German talk show “Doppelpass”.


Regarding the transfer of Thiago Alcantara, Hoeneß expressed frustration that the Spanish midfielder signed a contract extension with the club, then claimed he wished to seek a bigger challenge a few days later. Hoeneß also referred to the tactics of EPL clubs Liverpool and Manchester United as “blackmail”.

“[Thiago] obviously came to an agreement with one of these clubs, yet neither has tried to contact us,” Hoeneß said, “Both clubs are bluffing. [They’ll] wait until the last week and then try to make us accept a cheap offer.” Hoeneß, unsurprisingly, utilized the chance to claim the high ground. “That’s not a business method from my perspective,” he said.

With respect to defender David Alaba's recent contractual demands, Hoeneß referred to the Austrian's agent as a "greedy piranha" and suggested that Alaba's father had fallen under the agent's spell. "The father, whom I actually like very much and with whom I've always had great conversations, is being influenced by him," Hoeneß said, "I'm of the opinion that [David] shouldn't allow himself to be corrupted by outside forces."

Hoeneß wasn't quite finished with the Alaba situation. "It's really all about the money," he added, "He [David] already plays for the best club in the world. Where else should he go? The final one, two, or three million Euros won't make him happier."


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