Bayern Munich could make a case for having pulled off the signing of the January window after managing to secure João Cancelo on a loan deal until the end of the season without having to fork out a single penny (beyond wages).
Though the €70m (£61.9m) option to buy attached certainly appears prohibitive as far as the Bavarians’ hopes of making the deal permanent are concerned, current circumstances could aid the club’s ambitions in that regard.
“João Cancelo has been a target of Bayern’s for over four years. They took the chance on him and have already told Cancelo that it won’t be possible to pay the €70m in the summer for him – they don’t have the money. They want to keep their cards open with him,” Christian Falk exclusively revealed in his latest column for CaughtOffside.
“But there’s still hope they can get him cheaper. If something were to happen to Manchester City in the near future – keeping in mind the current investigation into alleged financial irregularities – perhaps it might encourage the club to sell players and then Bayern could get Cancelo for a smaller fee.
“The Bundesliga is keeping an eye on this, as Cancelo is enjoying his time in Munich and I think he would like to stay. This could make the poker in the summer a little easier for Bayern, that’s the hope.”
Manchester City are set to be the subject of a fresh investigation by an independent commission after a Premier League discovery alleged that the Sky Blues had committed a number of financial breaches – over 100, to be precise.
If the commission in question finds supporting evidence of it’s own, there’s no telling what kind of consequences the incumbent league champions will be saddled with.
Current sanctions range from a fine (arguably a slap on the wrists in light of City’s vast wealth) to any ‘such other order as it thinks fit’ (Mirror), which could involve relegation from the English top-flight by the judicial panel in question.
There’s almost certain to be appeals issued by Pep Guardiola’s side if a guilty verdict is supplied, which would delay the process by several years, though it may still encourage a certain frugality that would benefit Bayern Munich in the short-term.