Manuel Neuers consultant Thomas Kroth has questioned the competitiveness of FC Bayern Munich and the future of his client with the German record champion.
“Manuel is success-oriented. My impression is that the gap to the four top English teams is already serious and that the Munich squad is not yet positioned to seriously tackle Manuel’s goals,” Kroth told the Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Neuer’s goal is to become European Champion and win the Champions League once again. Newer’s future at FC Bayern therefore depends on the transfer policy of the record champion. “If he realises that FC Bayern is on the ball, then he will really blossom again,” said Kroth.
According to Kroth, Neuer, whose contract with the Bavarians runs until 2021, “now comes the phase in which he has to decide: What are the prospects for the future? The contract extension and a career end with FC Bayern is of course the obvious model. But not the only one.”
A career end 2021 with then 35 years is not an option. Kroth, who runs the agency “Pro Pfofil” and has been in charge of Neuer since his Schalker days, also admitted that the 33-year-old goalkeeper was “mentally under stress” last season.
“Many things were somehow added up and interpreted against him”, Kroth explained: “The bottom line was: ‘He’s 33 years old now, now he’s gradually breaking down’. Many have interpreted his achievements as having lost the extraordinary and indomitable.”