Bayern Munich's bid to recall Josip Stanisic from Leverkusen faces roadblock

However, the move appears to be facing resistance from Die Werkself, primarily due to their current defensive predicament, with Odilon Kossounou of Ivory Coast and Edmond Tapsoba of Burkina Faso set to represent their countries in the Africa Cup of Nations come January.

Despite Bayern's intention, it would seem Leverkusen are not inclined to facilitate the return of Stanisic, and their coach, the revered Xabi Alonso, made their stance clear during a press conference.

"We still have many months until May. He has the experience, he has the quality. We need top players in every position. Josip can play in several positions. We are very happy with him, with his attitude every day," Xabi Alonso conveyed, following Leverkusen's impressive 5-2 victory over Sandhausen in the DFB-Pokal.

"In the summer, we had a clear idea of how we wanted to build the squad. We wanted to be competitive in all competitions by December. We need two players of a good level for almost every position."

Alonso emphasized the importance of balance within the squad, highlighting that Leverkusen are currently in a favourable position, boasting a high level of play even when they make changes.

Stanisic, aged 23, has featured in eight matches across various competitions for Leverkusen.

The Croatian's loan spell has been a bit of a mixed bag thus far. While he has shown his quality on the pitch when given the opportunity, those chances have not come as frequently as he might prefer.

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