Dani Olmo Rejected Bayern Twice Before Barcelona Move, Says Agent
Dani Olmo turned down Bayern Munich on two separate occasions before completing his move to Barcelona, with his representative Andy Bara explaining that the midfielder’s career plan required patience rather than an early switch to Germany’s biggest club.
The first Bayern approach came while Olmo was developing at Dinamo Zagreb. Bara advised the Spain international to remain on his existing path, believing he needed another stage in his development before joining a club of Bayern’s scale. Olmo subsequently left the Croatian side for RB Leipzig in January 2020 in a €20 million transfer.
A planned route through Zagreb and Leipzig
Bara said the decision to pass on Bayern during Olmo’s Dinamo years was made on his advice. He told the player that another step was needed first, a route that eventually took Olmo to Leipzig and then back to Spain.
Bayern returned with fresh interest in the summer of 2024, when Olmo was an established Leipzig player. Barcelona and other leading European clubs were also in the running, but the playmaker chose Camp Nou in a deal valued at €62 million overall.
Bara admitted that Barcelona did not initially appear to be the obvious choice. However, he believes the move has since been fully justified by Olmo’s progress for club and country. The agent pointed to the player’s major international honours, including the European Championship, Nations League and World Cup, and described him as among Spain’s 10 leading players.
Barcelona’s strong league start
Olmo has supplied three assists as Barcelona opened the La Liga season with seven victories from seven matches. Hansi Flick’s side lead the division on 21 points and will resume their domestic campaign after the international break at home to Getafe on Saturday, October 10.
The matchday-eight meeting gives Barcelona an opportunity to protect their perfect start and strengthen their position at the summit, with Olmo now firmly part of a side carrying early momentum in the title race.
