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Bayern Munich’s Paul Wanner has been a hot prospect for years. The silky smooth midfielder introduced himself to the Bundesliga with a bang in 2022, but ever since Bayern snapped him up in 2018 from local club Ravensburg, Bayern’s coaches knew he was something special. And over time, an ever growing list of coaches and scouts have become aware of just how good he can be.
On that list is the current manager of Austria, Ralf Rangnick. Rangnick is a legendary figure in German football, having earned a reputation for finding and developing young talents to aid in the unfortunate rise of RB Leipzig. Now Rangnick might do the same for Austria with Wanner.
According to a report from the Abendzeitung, as captured by @iMiaSanMia, Ralf Rangnick “held a meeting with Paul Wanner recently where he presented him with a clear perspective up until the 2026 World Cup.” Wanner is set to become a crucial part of Austria’s national team set up and might even get a call up for the international break later this month. Rangnick’s interest in Wanner has been obvious for months now, no more so than when he decided to go to Bayern II’s recent 3-2 win over 1. FC Schweinfurt in person to watch Paul Wanner play. The man went to watch a match in the Regionalliga. That’s a pretty obvious sign that he is interested in getting Wanner to commit to Germany’s neighbors.
However, Wanner is eligible to play for both Austria and Germany. So where are Germany in all of this while Rangnick is visiting the Regionalliga? Nowhere to be seen. There does not seem to be much contact between Bayern’s star talent and the struggling footballing nation. Which is especially strange now, considering that Germany could really use an injection of new talent after failing horribly in two consecutive World Cups. It now seems likely that the youngster will not line up for Germany anymore, having represented Germany at various youth levels.
Meanwhile, Abendzeitungalso reports-and also captured by @iMiaSanMia, that Wanner will go on loan next summer. While training regularly with the stars in Bayern’s first team is likely to help Wanner progress as a player, his lack of game time at a top level does not. So Bayern is likely to try to find a temporary home for Wanner come the summer.
