#17 Mark van Bommel ~ Set for exit?

[Sven]

Bayern Munich have announced they are on the brink of signing midfielder Mark van Bommel from Barcelona, although Uli Hoeness says the arrival of the Dutchman will not pave the way for Owen Hargreaves to join Manchester United.

The German champions lost star man Michael Ballack to Chelsea over the summer, with Ze Roberto also departing on a free transfer, and Felix Magath's side are now fighting hard to keep Hargreaves away from the clutches of Sir Alex Ferguson.

Facing the prospect of defending their title with a weakened midfield, Bayern have moved to bring van Bommel to the Allianz Arena on a three-year deal, with the former PSV Eindhoven man now set to leave Camp Nou after just one season.

Team manager Uli Hoeness confirmed van Bommel will complete a transfer to Germany if he passes a medical.

"We're in agreement with Barcelona," Hoeness told Arena TV.

"Van Bommel is coming next week.

"If he comes through the medical with no problems he'll sign a three-year contract."

However, Hoeness has also insisted that van Bommel's arrival does not mean Bayern will now agree to let Hargreaves move to The Premiership with United.

The England international, who was named on the bench for Bayern on Saturday after missing the opening two games of the season due to illness, has made public his desire to move to Old Trafford, but Hoeness is confident he will remain at the German side past the transfer deadline.

"We want to be stronger still with Van Bommel and Hargreaves," Hoeness added.

"He's not leaving. When the transfer window closes the whole episode will be over, you can bet your bottom dollar."

i dont think this means owen out.

[LAF]

I think it does. Owen was on the bench today but never played, I think they'll hold out so United give them a shit load of cash.

Good signing aswell.

[MUFC]

Please just accept a bid so we can get this dam transfer window over and done with. Cant wait for 31st August.

[Oliver_Kahn]

I don't see Hargreaves leaving, Bommel plays in a diferent position, he is more likely to "replace" Ballack then to replace Hargreaves.

[Lazarus]

Van Bommel is a good signing for Bayern that strengthen's their midfield. However, I don't seen him as the replacement for Ballack that many people see him to be. He is more of a midfielder that sits in front of the defence and links the play to the rest of the midfield. He is not a box-to-box player and does not posses the attacking attributes of Ballack, I still feel that the only recognisable AM the club has is Karimi and maybe Shweinstieger but he is more accomplished as a left winger.

[Oliver_Kahn]

Still I believe a midfield with Hargreaves and Bommel, because I just don't trust Karimi to lead Bayern's offensive play.

[Oliver_Kahn]

Bommel not being as good as expected.
In other words, we really miss Ballack.

[Oliver_Kahn]

FC Bayern's influential midfielder Mark van Bommel has announced that he will no longer play for the Dutch national team.


The Dutch FA, the KNVB, confirmed that van Bommel will no longer feature in national coach Marco van Basten's team planning with immediate effect.

Step down despite nomination

"We have acknowledged Mark van Bommel's decision and we have accepted it" stated van Basten after hearing the news.

Van Bommel had been nominated for the Dutch squad for the upcoming EURO 2008 qualifying matches against Bulgaria on Saturday and Albania on October 11th.

The Dutch FA said that the 29 year old midfielder told them on Sunday that he would not be prepared to play for The Netherlands under the present coaching team.

Mark van Bommel was capped 24 times by his country, and scored one goal. Marco van Basten used van Bommel in three games during last summer's 2006 World Cup.

http://www.bundesliga.de/en/liga/new...hp?f=38920.php

[Oliver_Kahn]

Mark van Bommel is to suspend his involvement with the Netherlands national squad, the Bayern newcomer announced on Sunday, revealing he is not prepared to appear in national colours under the current management team. "My differences with head coach Marco van Basten are too great," the 29-year-old revealed to fcbayern.de.

"We have noted Mark van Bommel's decision and are obliged to accept it," van Basten responded via official Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) channels. Van Basten had named van Bommel in his squad for the forthcoming Euro 2008 qualifiers against Bulgaria on 7 October and Albania on 11 October. The player was omitted from the Dutch set-up for the initial matches following the summer World Cup.

Coach in the crossfire

The midfielder insisted representing his country remained "a dream come true," and that his temporary retirement from the international scene was solely as a result of his personal dispute with van Basten. Van Bommel's announcement was preceded by a similar move from veteran Real Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who also named the Netherlands coaching staff as grounds for his withdrawal from the national set-up.

Van Nistelrooy, part of the Dutch squad at the World Cup alongside van Bommel, fired off a hefty verbal salvo at van Basten's selection policies, accusing the former world-class striker of cronyism. The ex-Manchester United goal-getter is the latest in a long line of experienced Dutch internationals, including Tottenham Hotspurs' Edgar Davids, to voice public criticism of van Basten's recent squad line-ups.

http://www.fcbayern.t-com.de/en/news...1fbf751f31658f

[Oliver_Kahn]

It's better to have him focused only on Bayern.

[Oliver_Kahn]

In the 106-year history of Bayern Munich there have never been two Dutch players in the quad at the same time, until this summer. Just before the transfer window closed, Bayern scored a coup by luring Mark van Bommel away from Barcelona to Munich, where his old friend Roy Makaay was waiting for him. By all accounts his fellow countryman played a role in the high-profile transfer.

fcbayern.de wanted to get to the bottom of the transfer story and met with the Dutch stars for an interview. The first part of the interview principally covers current sporting issues. And in part 2, to be published here on Monday evening, the players share their experiences of being Dutch players in Spain and Germany and explain how their friendship came about.

Interview with the “Dynamic Dutch Duo”, part 1

fcbayern.de: Mark, what role did Roy play in your move to Bayern Munich?
Mark van Bommel: “Bayern Munich have made a few approaches for me in the past, even when I was at Eindhoven. The first offer from Bayern didn’t go through as I had already signed for Barcelona. The second time they approached me Barcelona didn’t want to let me go. When they asked me a third time I told the Barca bosses quite clearly that I wanted a transfer to Bayern Munich. Roy was a good intermediary in the whole affair. He told me what a great club Bayern Munich is and that he thought it would be good if I joined. But he always let me make my own decision. And now, here I am.“
Roy Makaay: “I think the club realised that they could do with an extra midfielder and Mark sprang to mind. The Bayern bosses then made contact with him via our joint advisor, Rob Jansen. He tested the water with Barcelona and the whole thing really got going a couple of days before our friendly in Barcelona. After that everything happened really fast.“

fcbayern.de: But it wasn’t just your friendship with Roy that made you move to Munich, was it?
Van Bommel: “No. My situation at Barcelona had changed since my first season there. The trainer told me that he wanted to rotate the squad more in future. I wasn’t very keen on that idea and told them that I wanted a transfer. But anyway, I am obviously really pleased to be playing alongside Roy at Bayern Munich. Barcelona was a good time for me but I’m sure it will be great here in Munich too.“

fcbayern.de: How do you feel that you have been accepted by Bayern Munich, Mark?
Van Bommel: „Very well. I think people are pleased that I am here. The team integrated me straight away and they are a great group of lads. Also the other people at the club have made me feel very welcome and given me all the help I’ve needed.“
Makaay: „Mark’s integration in the team was easy, particularly because he can speak the two most important languages at the club – German and Spanish.“

fcbayern.de: Expectations of you are high. The club wants you to play a leading role on the pitch and stamp your mark on the whole team.
Van Bommel: „I am trying to play the way I always play. I was asked to join the club because of the qualities I have. I haven’t put in any brilliant performances yet but I have definitely been able to help the team. I think that I’ve been OK so far but I can play even better.“
Makaay: „Mark has already scored some important goals. He is gelling more and more with the team during every game and has shown us what he can do. I’m sure he will be a great help to us in the future.“

fcbayern.de: Mark, you won last year’s Champions League with Barcelona. How far do you think Bayern Munich can go on the international stage?
Van Bommel: „It’s difficult to say. You do need some luck, as we had at Barcelona last year. In the knock-out stages we always played the second leg at home, which is an advantage. And in the semi-final against AC Milan we were lucky because one of their goals was disallowed. Otherwise it would have been difficult for us.“

fcbayern.de: Bayern has made a good start in this year’s Champions League, but in the Bundesliga you have had two successive away defeats which coach Felix Magath is putting down to problems in the attacking line-up.
Makaay: „I don’t think that it’s purely a striker problem. The whole team must work at creating more goal chances and then taking them.“
Van Bommel: „Roy is right. Our problem against Wolfsburg was that we had very few chances. But this is not down to the quality of individual players, particularly not the strikers. Our four strikers are all first class but there are always phases in a season when you can’t score. Generally we need to put the attackers in better scoring positions and then they will start finding the back of the net again.“

http://www.fcbayern.t-com.de/en/news...1fbf751f31658f

[Oliver_Kahn]

He is playing better lately, even though he isn't the player we needed.

[Oliver_Kahn]

In part 2 of the interview with Dutch duo Roy Makaay and Mark
van Bommel, the players speak about the difference between the Bundesliga and the Primera Divsion in Spain, about life in Munich
and their friendship.


fcbayern.de: You have both played football for Spanish clubs. Where do you see the differences between football in the Primera Division and the Bundesliga?
Van Bommel: "Both are big leagues. In Spain every team wants to play football. You have a bit more time. When it comes to training, each trainer has his own methods, it has nothing to do with the country you're playing in.“
Makaay: "Here in Germany there is more running around, all players are in top physical condition. In Spain they play a different type of football. There are more stars in the Spanish league, even at the smaller clubs. They tend to play more attacking football than in the Bundesliga. They seem to play with a “we’ve got nothing to lose” attitude.
Van Bommel: "The fans just wouldn’t accept it if their team played defensively when Barcelona, Real or the other big clubs came. They also like to push forward. A nil-nil draw doesn’t make the fans happy.“

fcbayern.de: How does the Bundesliga rate in Holland?
Makaay: "Very highly. I always used to watch the “Sportschau”
(sports round-up programme) at 6pm on a Saturday evening. Dutch footballers have always enjoyed playing in Germany and now even more Dutch internationals are moving to the Bundesliga. I think I was the first and now there is a whole troop of us.“
Van Bommel: "And now even ex-internationals (smiles).“

fcbayern.de: How do you like living in Germany?
Van Bommel: "I’ve only been here for a couple of weeks but I’ve already noticed that Germany is a footballing nation. The World Cup showed that too – a great atmosphere, everything perfectly organised, excellent stadiums. And when people here make an appointment, they arrive on time.“
Makaay: "In Spain you sometimes have to wait for half an hour. Also the German and Dutch mentalities have much in common. And lots of Dutch people speak German.“
Van Bommel: "In Holland we used to have just three television channels and then we got ten German ones as well. You watch German TV and automatically learn how to understand it and speak German. The languages are quite similar.“

fcbayern.de: So how long have you two been friends?
Makaay: "We played against each other at youth team level. He was at Sittard and I was with Arnheim. Mark won the league and I was leading goal-scorer. Then we played together in the Dutch Under-21 side and I was Mark’s captain (smiles). After that we met up again in the Dutch
B-team. Since then we have kept in regular contact with each other.“
Van Bommel: "I think that we’ve only played against each other once since our youth days. Roy moved to Spain relatively early on and when I started in Spain he was already playing at Bayern.“

fcbayern.de: In contrast to Roy you have spent most of your career to date in Holland. Why?
Van Bommel: "Well, I could have moved much earlier. But the package was never right and I didn’t receive the right offer until Barcelona came along. And now it’s pretty good at Bayern.“

fcbayern.de: How often have you had to listen to the classic jokes in Germany about the Dutch and their caravans?
Van Bommel: "Quite a few times. But honestly speaking, I’ve never been on holiday in a caravan before. What about you Roy?
Makaay: "Me neither. But after three years the jokes dry up.“
Van Bommel: "Audi hasn’t got any caravans in its range yet, has it? (smiles). Now that would be a good idea!“

http://www.fcbayern.t-com.de/en/news...9529a48168fc7c

[Oliver_Kahn]

I hope Bommel continues improving since he is the replacement for Michael Ballack.