Bayern pulled out of Nico Williams race over wage demands

Athletic came out on top in the fight for Nico Williams. When the winger seemed determined to leave and was torn between Barcelona and Bayern Munich, he finally opted to stay at home and renewed with the Basque club until 30 June 2035.

But was this battle a genuine one until the very end? Bayern's sporting director, Max Eberl, admitted on 'DAZN' during the clash with PSG that he was in talks with Athletic and Nico Williams, but was never close to signing him.

"We explored whether signing a player like Nico Williams was feasible, but with the wage demands we heard, just from talking to the player, Bayern quickly withdrew and said they wouldn't do it," asserted the Bavarian club's director.

Max Eberl's words are in direct conflict with information published by 'Sky Sports'. At the time, the German delegation claimed that Bayern had offered him 12 million euros, capitalising on Barcelona's problems in balancing the books to register the European Championship winner.