On transfer deadline day, everything pointed to Joao Palhinha leaving Fulham and ending up at Bayern Munich, only for the deal to collapse at the final minute.
This meant the midfielder stayed at Craven Cottage, where he then extended his contract, but that didn’t stop the rumours of a move to Bavaria from reappearing.
In fact, in an interview with Sport Bild on Sunday, Christoph Freund, Bayern Munich’s sporting director, made it clear that the Fulham star was still very much on their agenda.
The need for the Bundesliga side to sign a new defensive midfielder has been made very clear by the choices Thomas Tuchel has had to make, and Palhinha remains high on the wish list.
Freund said: “Of course he is still on our radar. The club worked intensively with Palhinha in the summer. I was there for the bit on the last, strange day of the transfer window, but you can’t say yet what will happen. We are generally exploring the market.”
The fact that such a prominent member of the Bayern Munich hierarchy is openly discussing the interest in Palhinha means there is a high chance something will be attempted in the next transfer window.
It’s no secret that Tuchel really likes the Portuguese, and with his side needing extra help to try and dethrone Xabi Alonso’s relentless Bayer Leverkusen from the top of the Bundesliga, more security in midfield could go a long way.
