At the beginning of the year, Paul Wanner became the youngest player in FC Bayern’s Bundesliga history at the age of 16 years and 15 days. Three more substitutions followed – and the hard-fought contract extension until 2027.
At the time, Bayern showed Wanner a plan with the professionals, which is why the offensive jewel canceled Borussia Dortmund, VfL Wolfsburg and Bayer Leverkusen. But: Since then, the strong left foot has not received any further assignments, contrary to what was discussed.
Nagelsmann does not flap his ears
“It was all a bit too restless for me in the last few weeks in the background of this player. That’s not really my thing”Julian Nagelsmann was a bit cryptic about Wanner in May before criticizing: “The U19 games he did weren’t always like that, where I sat in the stands and said: ‘I’m ringing with both my ears.'”
Nagelsmann further: “In the end, it is my expectation as a coach that when you train with the pros, you should of course be one of the best on the field.” Apparently Wanner wasn’t, so he didn’t even appear in the professional squad at the end of the season.
Return stronger
To classify: Wanner is still the youngest in the U19s, fluctuations in performance are of course completely normal at the tender age of 16. But the U17 national player has high self-imposed goals, including as many appearances in the Bundesliga as quickly as possible.
To this end, he is now apparently aiming for a loan. As the ‘Bild’ reports, Wanner wishes “More playing time, wants to develop as a regular player at another club and thus recommend himself to the big Bayern players”. But it remains to be seen whether he will find a Bundesliga club that guarantees a 16-year-old a lot of appearances.
