Bundesliga
Perisic: "You can't say no when Bayern call!"
Ivan Perisic says the appeal of joining Bayern Munich was too great to turn down this summer, following his one-year loan move from Serie A side Inter Milan.
The 30-year-old took part in his first training session with his new teammates on Wednesday before his official unveiling at the club's Säbener Straße complex, where he revealed that the transfer was swiftly finalised.
"Everything happened very quickly," he said. "I only needed a couple of hours to decide and to speak to my family. You can't say no when a club like Bayern Munich calls you."
And while he is suspended for the team's Bundesliga Matchday 1 opener against Hertha Berlin on Friday, the Croatia international is confident of making an impact in Niko Kovac's side: "I've got a lot of experience and that helps me. I'm coming here to play. At this level you need every player in the squad."
Watch: Perisic's top 5 Bundesliga goals
He will be particularly needed out wide following the departures of veteran wingers Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben. Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry are the two players earmarked as their long-term successors, but an injury to either would have left the talented but inexperienced Alphonso Davies as the only out-and-out winger in the first-team squad.
Perisic's arrival therefore adds greater depth and Kovac was delighted to be reunited with a player he knows well from his time as head coach of the Croatia national team between 2013 and 2015.
"I know what he can do," said Kovac. "He's one of the top three players in our national side and he's a team player […] He'll give us drive on the flanks and that's what we need on our game."