Jonathan Tah has joined Bayern Munich on a free transfer from Bayer Leverkusen. The 29-year-old center-back, who has a Transfermarkt market value of €30 million ($34 million) has signed a contract until 2029 with the Bavarian giants.

Whether Tah will join ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup or in July remains to be seen. Leverkusen has been reluctant to release the defender ahead of his contract expiring, asking for a transfer fee in the region of $1 million.

“It’s no secret that we’ve had Jonathan Tah on our radar for a long time,” director of sport Max Eberl said in a club statement. “We appreciate his quality: he’s a character who takes on responsibility. Jonathan had a lot of offers but chose FC Bayern, which pleases us very much.”

Indeed, Bayern Munich tried to sign Tah last summer. However, after heated negotiations between Bayern and Leverkusen, a deal ultimately fell through. Now, one year on, Bayern got their player on a free transfer instead.

“In Jonathan Tah, we’ve acquired a player with international experience and quality, who won’t need much time to establish himself in our defence,” sporting director Christoph Freund said in a club statement. “He’ll be a good and important addition for us with his technical qualities as well as his manner and the way he leads.”

Adding another defender has been paramount for Bayern Munich. The club lost English center-back Eric Dier to AS Monaco on a free transfer. Dayot Upamecano and Min-Jae Kim struggled with injuries throughout the season. Korean defender Kim, in particular, struggled with fitness issues that directly impacted his form.

Furthermore, Japanese center-back Hiroki Ito broke his metatarsal at the beginning of the season and then struggled with complications from the injury in the spring. As a result, Ito will be out for the Club World Cup.

Injuries to the backline meant that Bayern was significantly understaffed in defense on the final stretch of the season. An issue that ultimately cost them in the quarterfinals of the Champions League against Inter Milan.

Those factors meant that Bayern revisited signing Tah for the summer. The German national team defender had announced last summer that he wasn’t going to renew his contract in Leverkusen.

With the Bayern deal collapsing last summer, Tah was subsequently linked with moves to the Premier League and LaLiga, where Barcelona was also interested. The Catalan giants under German head coach Hansi Flick were close to signing Tah. But registration issues meant a deal didn’t come together.

Thankfully for Tah, Bayern came back in for the defender. “I’m very happy to be at FC Bayern,” Tah said in a club statement. “I want to take on responsibility here and work hard every day so that we’re successful as a team and win lots of trophies together.”

Tah certainly knows how to win trophies. The 29-year-old was a crucial player in Leverkusen’s undefeated 2023/24 domestic campaign, which ended with the club winning the double consisting of the Bundesliga title and the DFB Pokal.