Aug 2, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Roma defender Medhi Benatia (17) passes the ball in front of Inter Milan forward Mauro Icardi (9) during the second half of the match at Lincoln Financial Field. Inter Milan won the match 2-0. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY SportsWell there goes that idea. AS Roma defender Mehdi Benatia had been linked with Chelsea FC this transfer window but has instead been signed by Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich. The Moroccan has been signed as cover for the injured Javi Martinez who will miss the entire season with torn knee ligaments. He is usually deployed as a center back but may be used elsewhere by the always creative Pep Guardiola.
The club made it official this morning via their official Twitter account below:
Der #FCBayern steht unmittelbar vor der Verpflichtung von @MedhiBenatia. Die Infos: http://t.co/JO3dnck0p7 pic.twitter.com/lb0mtHoPmN
— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) August 26, 2014
The report from ESPN said: “Representatives of the German and Italian clubs reportedly struck a deal for the Morocco international on Monday night after the player had agreed terms with Bayern. Roma were believed to have been asking for 30 million euros with Bayern’s original offer reported to have been closer to 24 million.”
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The 27 year old Mehdi Benatia has become one of the best defenders in Serie A and helped lead AS Roma to a second place finish and a place in the Champions League this season. He was linked to a host of other clubs in the Premier League including Manchester United and Liverpool but ultimately chose to make the move to Germany.
There were reports that Mehdi Benatia wanted a wage increase which Roma denied so the relationship between the two parties soured. This lead to Benatia turning down another contract with the club which forced their hand in selling the defender. It is too bad that Chelsea missed out on a spectacular defender but the defense is not the issue of concern for the Blues.
Source: ESPN FC
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