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BAYERN MUNICH

Bayern Munich sign Barça’s rising star Thiago

Bayern Munich have signed Spain Under-21 captain Thiago Alcántara from Barcelona on a four-year contract in a deal worth €25 million ($32.6 million), the European champions confirmed on Sunday.

Bayern Munich sign Barça's rising star Thiago
Thiago will reunite with former Barça coach Pep Guardiona at Bayern Munich. Photo:. Lluis Gene/AFP

New Bayern coach Pep Guardiola had said last Wednesday that "it was Thiago or nobody" on his wish list of new players at the Champions League winners and the midfielder, who had also been linked with a move to Manchester United, will fly to Munich for his medical in the coming days.

Bayern will pay €20 million for the 22-year-old with the extra five million coming from a future friendly match between the two clubs.

Thiago scored a first-half hat-trick for Spain in the final of last month's European Under-21 Championships to claim a 4-2 win over Italy.

"Thiago Alcantara was the main wish of our new coach Pep Guardiola," said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

"We are pleased that we succeeded in making this great transfer happen.

"Thiago has only just been elected the best player of the Under-21 European Championship. He is a fantastic player with great perspective, which will strengthen Bayern."

Bayern claimed their sixth win from their sixth pre-season friendly on Sunday with a 4-0 win at German third division side Hansa Rostock.

But ahead of the Bundesliga resumption on August 9th, Thiago's arrival will only heighten competition in Bayern's midfield with Germany star Mario Goetze, another new signing from Borussia Dortmund, also vying with stars Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Toni Kroos and Thomas Mueller.

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FOOTBALL

Bayern Munich sack youth coach at centre of racism row

Bayern Munich, who face Lyon in a Champions League semi-final on Wednesday, have fired a coach from their youth academy amid a police investigation into allegations of racism.

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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