German giants Bayern Munich have announced that Stuttgart striker Mario Gomez will be moving to the Allianz Arena this summer.
Bayern made the offer for Gomez immediately after their 2-1 win over Stuttgart on the final day of the season. Barring a few technicalities, the deal is virtually through, and it is estimated that Bayern will pay Stuttgart a fee of 30 million euros for Gomez’s signature.
Gomez, who scored the only goal for Stuttgart when they lost 2-1 to Bayern- his 24th of the season, said that he had received offers from clubs in Italy and England, but chose to join Bayern as he wanted to stay in Germany. He added that Bayern were capable of holding their own in Europe too.
Gomez becomes Bayern’s fourth signing of the summer after Alexander Baumjohann, Anatoli Tymoschuk and Ivica Olic.
Meanwhile Stuttgart are reportedly targetting Toulouse hitman Andre-Pierre Gagnac as a replacement for Gomez, but are facing competition from HSV for his signature. Stuttgart finished third in the 2008-09 German Bundesliga- a remarkable achievement for a side that was languishing in 14th in November last year.