3 former Bayern Munich players we can’t believe are still free agents

Bayern Munich have a ton of former players at other clubs, but there are more than a few surprising names that are surprisingly unattached despite having not yet retired.

Of course, players like Sadio Mane and David Alaba are still active but we wanted to dig a little deeper and find those whose current unemployment has raised an eyebrow or two.

We’ve picked out three former big-name Bayern players that we can’t believe are currently without a club.

Jerome Boateng

Yes, this one surprised us too.

Boateng was one of the greatest defenders of the last decade, winning a plethora of trophies with Bayern and lifting the World Cup with Germany in 2014.

He spent 10 years at Bayern before leaving in 2021. The defender’s two years at Ligue 1 crisis club Lyon were significantly less successful and Boateng was released at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Aged 35, Boateng remains without a club and it must be doubtful whether he’ll play professionally again.

Douglas Costa

Costa has played for Shakhtar Donetsk, Bayern Munich and Juventus during his trophy-laden career, although he found himself starved of opportunities in Germany.

The 33-year-old was widely touted to be the next big thing early in his career but he suffered several big injuries that limited his development.

Having been released by LA Galaxy in 2023, Costa is currently unattached. It remains to be seen whether the forward finds a new club or simply retires from the game.

Douglas Costa at Bayern was special… pic.twitter.com/CD810CgwPI

— Slixx🇧🇦🇱🇺 (@KingsleyEra) June 3, 2023

Luiz Gustavo

Technically, Gustavo is a free agent right now upon his contract with Al-Nassr expiring.

The midfielder, who played in Brazil’s infamous 7-1 defeat to Germany at the 2014 World Cup, is a Bundesliga great having made over 200 appearances in the German top-flight for the likes of Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim.

Gustavo has signed up for Sao Paolo’s 2024 campaign, but still meets the criteria of this article. For now.

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