Red Bull Head of Sport Jochen Schneider and the rest of the organization were hit with a massive gut punch just 34 hours before the deadline as Polish striker Wiktor Bogacz rejected a deal to come to the United States.
It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Miedz Legnica striker would end up being the newest Red Bull player, confirmed by multiple outlets in Poland, before the transfer deadline passed on Wednesday, August 14th.
After both teams agreed on what would have been 1 Liga transfer record of around ~$2 million plus bonuses, and completed his medical in Leipzig, Germany, Bogacz called the deal off.
Here's what the striker had to say, putting out a statement on the clubs' website:
According to Kamil Warzocha the clubs attempted to rework the deal as a last-minute hail mary. "Today they even managed to reach a deal: transfer now, leave in the winter. But it was decided that it was not yet time for a transfer."
Now Red Bull has to quickly shift focus to whatever other options they had at striker., whether that's Daniel Fila or someone else. The good news is that the signing of Gremio midfielder Felipe Carballo "should" be 100% finalized on Wednesday; transfer fee agreed, medical, signing of contract, etc.
With just 30 hours left before the deadline, as I am currently writing this, it will be a mad scramble to the finish line for Red Bull to get a deal for a striker signed, sealed, and sent to the league office before the 12:59 p.m. deadline on August 14th. Can they do it? Only time will tell.
*Feature Photo credit: Miedz Legnica
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