Bayern withdraw Ballack contract offer
14.11.2005
Bayern have formally withdrawn their offer of a new, extended contract for playmaker Michael Ballack, chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told the club's Annual General Meeting on Monday evening. The decision by the board of directors came after an inconclusive meeting between senior officials, the player and his agent Michael Becker earlier in the day.
"We made an agreement four weeks ago, whereby Michael would tell us today whether or not he was accepting our extremely attractive offer. What Michael told us today was that he hadn't come to a decision yet," Rummenigge told the meeting. The board reacted immediately: "We formally withdrew our offer earlier today," the chairman informed club members present at the AGM, prompting applause from the floor.
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"In the final analysis, this doesn't necessarily mean Michael Ballack will leave this football club," the former world-class international continued, "but we'll begin surveying the market at once for the right alternatives for Bayern Munich."
Ballack's contract in Bavaria expires in summer 2006. The Germany captain arrived in Munich from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2002. Ballack has lifted the German championship shield and the DFB German Cup twice apiece since then.