The Spanish midfielder made the move to Anfield on Friday, but not before a tearful meeting with the CEO and the staff at Bayern
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge says Thiago Alcantara cried in his arms for five minutes after the club granted him a transfer to Liverpool.
The midfielder was expected to leave the German giants after the Bayern CEO confirmed in July that he did not want to renew his contract, which was set to expire at the end of the season.
After seven years with the Bundesliga champions, the 29-year-old completed a move to Liverpool in a deal that could rise to as much as £27 million ($35m).
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Rummenigge revealed that he had an emotional encounter with the Spain international shortly after Bayern and Liverpool came to an agreement as Thiago was waiting for him to arrive at the club’s headquarters.
“On Thursday, the transfer to Liverpool had been granted. When I arrived, I would say 10 minutes later, in the car park, he was standing at the spot where I always park,” Rummenigge told Sky Sport.
“I thought to myself: ‘What’s he doing here?’ He came up to me and cried in my arms for five minutes. He cried for five minutes and simply said: ‘Thank you very much for allowing this’.
“He is a great human being and was always a first-class player for Bayern Munich. I was tremendously happy for him in [the Champions League games in] Lisbon. He has always been questioned because he supposedly isn’t capable of bringing big performances in big games, but in the entire three-game tournament in Lisbon he proved what quality he has.
“That he is now leaving us is a big loss quality wise, but also just as a human being. Despite that, we respected that he wanted to do something new.
“His contract, just like David Alaba’s, was running out in a year. Every club would of course like to avoid having a player of that quality leave for nothing and we considered this and granted his wish, but he has conducted himself brilliantly.
“The way he said goodbye to all the employees and players was unbelievable. I became teary-eyed too because I always had a really close relationship with him.
“You would run into him in Grunwald regularly and meet him in the evening for dinner and things like that. It was almost a familial relationship that was cultivated with him and you get to know the player not just on the pitch but as a human being. He is a super guy.”
