Bayern president confirms new contract offer for Chelsea target Niklas Sule

Stefan Bienkowski

• Updated: 19 May 2021 15:55 BST
• 2 min read

Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer has confirmed that the Bundesliga club plan on speaking to Niklas Sule about a new contract in the spring. 

The 25-year-old defender’s future in Munich has been called into doubt due to a number of factors that may impact his game time in Hansi Flick’s team in the future. 

Despite being a central defender by trade, Sule has played a bit-part role in Flick’s this season which has largely been limited to starting roles at right-back. 

Following a number of serious injuries that ruled him out of action for much of last season, Sule has struggled to show the pace and match sharpness that he offered when he first joined the club from Hoffenheim in 2017. 

As such, reports have begun to speculate over Sule’s standing in Flick’s team and whether a move away from Bayern now seems inevitable. 

Bayern Munich’s most used defenders in the Bundesliga this season

However, the club’s president has knocked back such suggestions, instead indicating that Sule has looked like his old, athletic self and that an extension to his current deal will be on the table shortly. 

“I’ve seen that Niklas Sule now has technical masterpieces in store, with overhead kicks and everything,” said Hainer in an interview with Sport1.

“I wouldn’t have expected that (laughs). He is an important player for us. We will sit down with him in the spring.” 

Does this rule out a move to Chelsea for Sule?

News of a contract extension from Bayern would naturally make most Chelsea fans wonder if their club are still in pole position to sign the defender, as suggested by some reports in England. 

However, just because Bayern may have plans to offer Sule an extension, that doesn’t specifically mean the defender will decide to stay at the club. 

Sule’s struggles to pick up game time in his favoured, central position in Munich may only get worse next season following Bayern’s decision to spend around £40 million on RB Leipzig central defender Dayot Upamecano, who’ll likely replace David Alaba at centre back at the end of the season. 

As such, it’s not entirely implausible to suggest that the defender’s situation at the club won’t improve any further even if he is offered an extended deal. Unless there is a promise of more game time in central defence, Sule may still opt for options in England.