Player ‘so smart’ for turning down ‘€125m’ Manchester United contract – Likes of him have ‘become rare’

Do you remember that period of time when Louis van Gaal was in charge of Manchester United? Thomas Müller probably does.

That’s because the Dutch manager was keen to sign him for the Old Trafford side, with the Red Devils reportedly going all out to make that happen.

The transfer never took place in the end, as the player turned down the approach from Manchester United to stay at Bayern Munich.

The 33-year-old has been with the Bavarian side since joining them in 2000 from TSV Pähl, with many seeing him as a one club man.

He has made 637 appearances for the Bundesliga giants over the years, scoring 228 goals and assisting another 246, reinforcing his status as a legend there, where he continues to play an important role to this day.

His love for Bayern Munich is probably one of the reasons why he will have turned down the chance to play in the Premier League, which was a move former footballer Klaus Augenthaler appreciated.

Talking about how players can be too focused on their own careers in an interview with Kicker, he said: “Someone like Thomas Müller who stays in a club for so long has become rare, and a team can only grow together if as many players as possible stay for a certain amount of time. He would certainly not go to England for €3m more a year.”

Recalling that Müller ‘turned down a five-year, €125m deal from Manchester United’ (that’s around €480k/week), Kicker asked Augenthaler about whether he felt it was the right move.

He replied: “Thomas is so smart, he knows he can’t take anything with him. Whether I have €50m or €150m in my account – what do I do with it?”