Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich have announced the signing of winger Michael Olise from Crystal Palace.
The 22-year-old moves to the Allianz Arena for a reported £45m plus £5m in add-ons, with the deal also including a sell-on clause, and he has put pen to paper on a five-year contract until June 2029.
Olise completed his medical in Bavaria on Sunday afternoon and has become Bayern's second first-team signing of the summer since the arrival of new head coach Vincent Kompany, after defender Hiroki Ito.
The France Under-21 international departs Crystal Palace after scoring 16 goals and registering 25 assists during three successful years at Selhurst Park, where he established himself as a star player and a fans' favourite.
Olise was heavily linked with a move to Chelsea 12 months ago, but a move to Stamford Bridge ultimately failed to materialise and the winger instead penned a contract extension at Palace.
He then endured an injury-hit 2023-24 campaign, but the ex-Reading youngster still managed to contribute to 10 goals and six assists in 19 Premier League games, helping Oliver Glasner's side end the season strongly and climb into the top 10.
𝑩𝑰𝑮 𝒗𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒔! 🥶 𝑴𝑶 𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆! 🔴⚪ #ServusMichael #FCBayern #MiaSanMia pic.twitter.com/YGfW0HXFjT
— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) July 7, 2024
Olise keen to prove himself at Bayern
Olise has since been linked with a host of top English and European clubs in recent months, with the likes of Chelsea, Newcastle United, Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal all said to have expressed an interest in the highly-rated winger.
However, Bayern have successfully won the race for Olise's signature and the Frenchman has since explained what has attracted him to make the big-money switch to Germany.
Speaking to Bayern's official website following confirmation of his transfer, Olise said: "The talks with FC Bayern were very positive, and I'm very happy to now be playing for such a big club.
"It's a great challenge, and that's exactly what I was looking for. I want to prove myself at this level and play my part in ensuring that we win as many titles as possible with our team in the coming years."
Bayern sporting director Christoph Freund added: "Michael is quick, tricky, a goal threat and very versatile in attack. His goals and assists stats are already outstanding.
"At the age of 22, Michael is already very advanced, but is also hungry and still has a lot of potential. Fans come to the stadium to see players like Michael Olise."
Max Eberl, Bayern board member for sport, continued: "Michael Olise is a player who can make the difference and attracted great interest with his style of play.
"We want new impetus in our team, new energy, new ideas – that's what players like Michael Olise stand for. During the talks, he quickly signalled that he really wanted to join FC Bayern. We're very much looking forward to him. He will enrich our game."
Steht dir hervorragend! 👌🔴#MiaSanMia #ServusMichael pic.twitter.com/MUUvUeXZBw
— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) July 7, 2024
Palace "hugely proud" of Olise's achievements
Crystal Palace, meanwhile, have wished Olise well for the next step in his career, with club chairman Steve Parish adding: "We are hugely proud of what Michael has achieved at Crystal Palace, a club where he has developed greatly as a player.
"We respect his desire to further test himself at the highest level of world football, and I would like to personally wish him the very best for his next adventure with Bayern Munich in Germany which I'm sure we will all follow closely."
Before donning the famous red jersey of Bayern, Olise will now turn his attention to representing France at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, meaning that he will likely miss the majority of Bayern's pre-season preparations.
Bayern's 2024-25 season will begin with a DFB-Pokal first-round tie against lower-league outfit SSV Ulm on August 16 before travelling to Wolfsburg for their first Bundesliga match eight days later.
Oliver Thomas
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