Bayern Munich surprised after Philipp Lahm rejects chance to remain at club
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ByEurosport
Updated 08/02/2017 at 18:00 GMT
Bayern Munich have expressed their surprise that captain Philipp Lahm has rejected the chance to become the club's sporting director when he retires at the end of the season.
Philipp Lahm (FC Bayern München)
Image credit: Eurosport
Lahm does not believe he will be able to maintain his high standards next year after announcing he will retire from football.
The 33-year-old Lahm has a year left on his contract with the defending Bundesliga champions but will walk away early. He also said he reject an offer from the club to become a sporting director.
Bayern released a statement on Wednesday morning expressing their surprise, but said the door would always remain open to the German World Cup winner.
"FC Bayern München is surprised by the approach of Philipp Lahm and his adviser. Uli Hoeneß and I have held open, intensive and constructive talks with Philipp in recent months about a possible position as sporting director of our club.
"At the end of last week, he informed us that he is currently not available for such a position and that he would like an early termination of his player contract, which runs until June 2018, at the end of the current season.
Until yesterday we assumed that there would be a joint announcement on this decision by Philipp Lahm and FC Bayern München. Philipp Lahm has been an important player for FC Bayern München for over a decade.
"We are convinced that our captain will now concentrate fully with the team on the tough upcoming tasks in the Bundesliga, Champions League and DFB Cup. We would like to make clear that the door will always remain open for Philipp at FC Bayern München.”
Lahm said he had been considering his future for some time and will give his all for the rest of the campaign.
"I'm going to stop playing football at the end of the season," the FC Bayern youth product confirmed on the club's official website following his team's 1-0 victory over VfL Wolfsburg in Tuesday evening's DFB Cup Round of 16 tie.
More than a year ago I started checking and questioning myself from day to day and week to week. I'm certain I'll maintain peak form through to the end of the season. I can manage that until the end of the campaign, but not beyond it.
On the chance to join the club's backroom staff, he added: "There were talks, and in the end I decided it's not the right time for me to take up a new position at FC Bayern."
Lahm announced the news after Bayern's 1-0 win over Wolfsburg in the DFB-Pokal, having made his 500th Bayern appearance against Schalke on Saturday.
On Wednesday he released a more in-depth statement explaining his decision and why this is the right time.
"Just as with my retirement from the national team (in 2014), I trust my inner senses," Lahm wrote. "As a captain, it's very important for me to always deliver a top quality performance, and I realise that I won't be able to do so beyond this season.
"I have been a player for FC Bayern since the age of 11. Except for the two years in Stuttgart, I have always worn the FCB jersey. Therefore it is clear to me that I will be working together again with FCB at some point in the future.
"As you all know, I am a person who likes to be prepared - this is why I'd like to take a step back in order to reflect on football as a whole and think about how to best make use of my expertise and experiences.
"For now, my focus lies completely on the remaining games,
"Surely, I will experience them more consciously than ever, knowing they are my last.
"We're in the quarter-finals of the DFB-Cup, we want to achieve the fifth consecutive championship in the league - and next week against Arsenal (in the Champions League) we'll face a true performance benchmark.
"Huge goals and challenges ahead, so #packmas!"
A World Cup winner with Germany, Lahm is aiming to win a record eighth Bundesliga title this season.
The Munich-born player has spent his entire club career with Bayern, bar a two-year loan spell at Stuttgart between 2003 and 2005.
He has won seven Bundesliga titles, six DFB-Pokals, the Champions League and the Club World Cup with Bayern.
He captained Germany to World Cup glory in 2014 before announcing his retirement from international football.
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