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Bayern Munich swoop for Swiss star Shaqiri

Bayern Munich are set to sign midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri for next season from Champions League rivals FC Basel, with media reports claiming the Swiss has already had a medical in the Bavarian city.

Published: 8 February 2012 14:17 CET

Bayern Munich swoop for Swiss star Shaqiri

Seb Stanbury (File)

Shaqiri is set to play against Bayern on February 22nd in the Champions League, Round of 16, first-round clash in Basel with the return match in Munich on March 13th.

The 20-year-old arrived in Munich on Tuesday with his agent and his brother and was photographed at Bayern’s training centre.

The Swiss star underwent a medical while his agent spoke with Bayern’s director of sport Christian Nerlinger, according to German daily Bild.

After Bayern missed out on signing Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Marco Reus, who will join Dortmund next season, Munich are reported to be set to offer Shaqiri a four-year deal.

“The transfer makes sense,” Swiss coach and former Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld told Bild.

“I told (Bayern chairman) Uli Hoeness a year ago that Xherdan is an outstanding player, someone who can easily adapt and evolve to play at the highest level.”

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Bayern Munich sack youth coach at centre of racism row

Bayern Munich's Kingsley Coman wearing a T-shirt that says: 'Red against racism' on June 10th. Photo: DPA.

The coach, who was not named, has had his contract terminated “by mutual agreement”, the German league and cup champions said in a statement late Monday.

The sacking is “the first result of an internal survey currently under way” at the youth training academy, it added.

Bayern Munich boss Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said last week he was “furious” after hearing of the allegations, first reported by the ARD broadcaster.

The coach is accused of making racist and other discriminatory comments in a series of messages, which he initially denied but later admitted, according to German media.

He had been a youth coach at the club since 2003 and had been in charge of children's and youth teams since 2006, according to the weekly Der Spiegel.

He made discriminatory comments based on skin colour, nationality, religion and sexual orientation, Spiegel reported.

These comments “do not correspond at all with the values that Bayern Munich represents”, Rummenigge said after police in Munich opened an investigation into the allegations.

READ ALSO: Bayern Munich Academy employee investigated over racism allegations

Bayern Munich was founded by German Jews in 1900, but all Jewish managers and players were excluded after Hitler came to power in 1933.

In June, not long after the death in the US of black man George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer, the entire team were pictured wearing t-shirts bearing the slogans “Black lives matter” and “Red card to racism”.

The club also launched a major anti-racism campaign in March, following incidents in German stadiums.

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