As if we were in any doubt, Rangers (or Michael Beale anyway) can find wave a permanent and happy goodbye to Malik Tillman after it was near-confirmed the Bayern kid will switch to Stuttgart in a £6M or loan (unclear at this stage) deal after failing to impress Bavaria chief Thomas Tuchel.
With Rangers submitting a £5.2M bid earlier in the summer, no deal was struck, and indeed, Bayern cancelled the loan purchase clause and compensated Rangers for our trouble.
Why?
It had nothing to do with profit, and everything to do with Bayern protecting themselves, and an asset’s best interests, while also showing a bit of grace to Rangers.
What was going on here?
Tillman absolutely, 100%, unequivocally did not want to stay at Ibrox. It’s that simple. He enjoyed his time in Scotland, but it was a one-season thing for him, to get some minutes, decent minutes, and get into the shop window for a move to a better league.
He wanted Bayern, absolutely, but new manager Thomas Tuchel wasn’t interested, despite the press offering content about him giving the USA international a chance. But this didn’t change Tillman into wanting Rangers after as a second choice. He wasn’t coming back to Ibrox for love nor money.
Ideally, Tillman wanted another Bundesliga club if he couldn’t have Bayern, and Stuttgart have stepped up as a massive contender for his signature.
There are conflicting stories about whether it’s a loan or a permanent move, but either way, it looks like Tillman will get his big Bundesliga gig.
One thing is for sure, as if there was any question over it – Tillman ain’t coming back to Glasgow, and has in fact now been replaced anyway by manager Michael Beale with a combination of Abdallah Sima and Sam Lammers.
We all move on.