Fulham
Premier League • England
Agent claims blockbuster Bayern Munich deal for Fulham star has been ‘postponed’ rather than ‘killed’
Joao Palhinha of Fulham celebrates
Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha saw a deadline day deal to Bayern Munich fall through, but his brother and agent has insisted the deal has only been postponed.
In the end, Fulham did well to keep hold of the Portuguese international as plenty of top European clubs were said to be interested.
Liverpool had been heavily interested in the player, but they were put off by his reported £90m asking price. A move to Bayern Munich then looked to be on the cards, until the deal collapsed on deadline day.
The 28-year-old flew to Germany to complete a deal with the German champions, but the deal was dependent on Fulham signing a replacement of their own.
As they didn’t manage to land any of their targets, the club decided to pull the deal at the last minute. Palhinha will now return to Fulham and spend the upcoming season with Marco Silva’s side.
While the Fulham fans will be happy to see Palhinha sticking around, his brother has made an interesting claim on the player’s future.
“They didn’t kill the dream, they just postponed it,” Goncalo Palhinha explained via the Daily Mail. “Very proud of my brother and the player I represent.
“Words of appreciation, recognition and thanks to the entire Bayern structure. The affection for the club in our family will remain forever even though my brother didn’t sign.”
Fulham will be happy to have Palhinha around
While Palhinha will be expected to leave Fulham eventually, they will have been boosted by keeping him around for the season to come.
Silva lost Aleksandar Mitrovic earlier in the window and to lose Palhinha in the same summer would have been a hammer blow for the Portuguese boss.
As Bayern Munich allowed Ryan Gravenberch to complete his deadline day move to Liverpool, they were keen on signing a midfielder of their own.
Palhinha would have been an excellent pickup for Thomas Tuchel’s side and time will tell if they do decide to pursue the player in the future.
The 28-year-old is under contract at Craven Cottage until the summer of 2027 and so the club is in a strong position to dictate his future.
While plenty of pundits have spoken highly of Palhinha, Didi Hamann isn’t convinced that the Portuguese international was the right target for Bayern Munich.
“Tuchel has denied the ability of all his sixes and eights. He said he doesn’t have a defensive midfielder,” Hamann told Sky Sports.
“Now the club is ready to pay 65 million euros for a player from Fulham! Not from Manchester United or Barcelona, from Fulham! What is a Kimmich, a Laimer, a Guerreiro, whoever, thinking?
“You need a hierarchy. If you don’t have a hierarchy in the team, you have nothing. Should Kimmich say something in the dressing room now: Is anyone else listening? I don’t know. That’s the biggest problem.”