Manuel Neuer has hinted at a potential exit from Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in the future. The German stopper’s contract runs out in 2019 and Neuer does not seem to keen on renewing it, revealing that he might make a move to another destination once his spell with the Bavarians concludes.
In a wide-ranging interview with German publication Der Westen, Neuer made the revelation that he may seek out new shores once his contract ends in 2019. When asked whether he seeks new challenges, having won everything with Bayern, he said “I am always motivated. I love competition and to measure myself against the best
“I am feeling well at Bayern Munich, but I cannot rule out that I will one day get the idea that I want something else. I still have a contract until 2019 and it is only January 2016 now.”
Neuer isn’t over confident about Bundesliga title
When asked about Bayern’s substantial lead in the Bundesliga, and their apparent stroll to a record fourth consecutive Bundesliga title in a row, Neuer dismissed the suggestion, saying “We are not getting any presents. No team is giving anything away against us. It will not get easier for Bayern from here on. We cannot just expect everything to go automatically.”
“Not a single team in Bundesliga history has ever won four league titles in a row. That is our main goal now and it will not be easy to achieve that. It will already be a successful season for me if we win the Bundesliga title.”
Neuer’s importance to Bayern’s league chances cannot be understated, although the Bavarians dominance of German football is possibly exemplified by this statistic :
Messi and Ronaldo deserve Ballon d’Or recognition
When asked if the battle for the Ballon d’Or has become boring, since it is a two-horse race between Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi, Neuer was gracious about their superiority, also alluding to their superior marketing skils, saying “The two have established the spotlight. Not only in football but also in marketing. All the advertising deals that involve those two, is a dimension that comes to no other player.”
“I also think in the footballing scenario these are some of the best players there are currently. That's [Ballon d’Or] what they deserve. It will be difficult to displace one or the other from the throne.”
Given Philipp Lahm’s recent allusion that the Ballon d’Or was only decided from a marketing standpoint, Neuer was far less critical of the award, pointing out that the votes of the entire footballing world would naturally favour those in the spotlight,saying “I do not know if the Ballon d’Or was decided by marketing considerations.”
“The voting shall takes place among the national captains and coaches of not only the 50 best nations, but also the rest of Asia, Africa and Central America – who professionally are not all 100 percent with football. Thus, such names as Messi and Ronaldo are a constant.”
