Ballack looks certain to leave Bayern
Monday, 14 November 2005 22:43Germany skipper Michael Ballack looks almost certain to leave Bayern Munich after the club officially withdrew their contract offer.
Ballack has been stalling over signing a new deal at the Allianz Arena amid reported interest from Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Bayern's patience has now run out with chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge telling the club's annual general meeting: "We officially withdrew our offer today."
Rummenigge's decision came after he met with the player and was told the 29-year-old had still not decided what he wanted to do when his contract expires in June 2006.
"(That) does not necessarily mean that Michael will leave us but I say point blank that we will immediately sound out the market to look for a replacement," Rummenigge added.
Bundesliga champions Bayern may now decide to offload the current German player of the year in January.
