As his year-long loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen is nearing its end, Josip Stanisic does not wish to return to Bayern Munich if the club’s leadership decides to retain coach Thomas Tuchel.

Josip Stanisic is silent about returning to Bayern Munich

Josip Stanisic admitted to feeling very disappointed about leaving Bayern Munich for Bayer Leverkusen on loan in the summer of 2023. Coach Thomas Tuchel revealed that he had no chance to play as Bayern’s right-back had three top-class players in Joshua Kimmich, Nousair Mazraoui, and Sasha Boey. The 24-year-old player continued to struggle to find playing opportunities at the Bay Arena in the first half of the 2023-2024 season.

Everything changed for Stanisic since the beginning of 2024 when coach Xabi Alonso had to let go of five key players for the AFCON 2023. The Croatian defender seized the opportunity to become a key player for Bayer Leverkusen during their accelerated push to win the Bundesliga title for the first time in history.

Most notably, Stanisic scored the opening goal in the 3-0 victory over Bayern Munich. Stanisic is in excellent form with one goal and one assist in the recent win against Bochum. Prior to that, the 24-year-old player equalized 2-2 for Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League semi-final second leg against AS Roma.

According to the plan, Stanisic will return to Bayern Munich after this season. Sky Sports Germany reported that the Croatian defender does not want to return to the Bavarians but was immediately refuted by Kicker. Stanisic has not spoken out about continuing with Leverkusen or returning to Bayern Munich. So far, Leverkusen has not had any negotiations with Bayern Munich regarding the possibility of buying the star for €18 million.

Kicker believes that Stanisic is ready to return to the Allianz Arena if Thomas Tuchel is no longer there. The 50-year-old coach reached an agreement with the Bayern leadership to part ways early in February, but he may stay as a successor has not been found yet.

The coaches Bayern Munich approached, such as Xabi Alonso, Julian Nagelsmann, or Ralf Rangnick, have all declined. Meanwhile, Bayer Leverkusen remains silent, waiting for Bayern Munich’s developments. Additionally, Coach Alonso has seen the impressive return of Arthur after a long injury, so acquiring Stanisic is not urgent.