The Germany international, who scored the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup final, has failed to carve out a starting spot since joining Bayern from rivals Borussia Dortmund in 2013 and had been linked with a possible move to Liverpool.

The 23-year-old, who had said at the start of last season he wanted to play more regularly, poured cold water on a move on Monday, saying he wanted to see out his contract until it expired in 2017 and looked forward to the next season under new coach Carlo Ancelotti, who is replacing Pep Guardiola.

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That bold statement of intent suggested that Götze might have been promised a brighter future than previously reported – but Bayern's CEO has insisted that the player who scored the winner at the 2014 World Cup final is being kept despite, rather than because of the opportunities he will be afforded.

Rummenigge's clear message

"I had talks with him (Mario) and Ancelotti. Mario knows the thoughts of Bayern," Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told Kicker magazine.

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (Bayern Munich) Image credit: Imago

"Everything was clearly and seriously explained to Mario.

"He knows what the club thinks and what the new coach thinks. Mario has to evaluate for himself whether he wants to play constantly."

Can Götze fight his way into the side?

Götze, hailed as the most talented German player of his generation, only returned to fitness in February following a five month injury break and made just 11 starts for Bayern in the Bundesliga, scoring three goals. Hardly inspiring numbers, though his numbers have never been inspiring since he moved to the Bavarian giants.

On Monday he split with his long-time agent before committing to Bayern, who won the domestic double this season. Does might suggest that the rumours of a move came more from his representative than from the man himself, and certainly in the words he spoke in Monday it sounds as if he believes he can convince his new manager of his worth.

"I look forward to the new season in Munich and will do everything possible to be in top shape for my first training session under Carlo Ancelotti," Götze said on Monday.

Mario Götze Image credit: AFP

What is Götze thinking? Three possible explanations

Götze has only ever been on the fringes at Bayern, and that situation is only likely to get worse: Ancelotti will certainly bring in a few new players – as a new coach at a top side we'd expect nothing less.

And that will surely only limit Götze's chances even more. So why would he want to stay, when he openly admitted last year that he is desperate to play more regularly?

The first possibility is that with just a year left on his contract, he is happy to sit things out for 12 months in order to earn himself the huge signing bonus that would come his way should he make a Bosman transfer at the end of his present deal. Even though he's clearly been told that he won't play, would he prefer to sit out one more season in hopes of a bumper payday? After all, he's already 'lost' the last few seasons of his career, would one more be that bad? With the recent – and unexpected – change of agent at the start of the week, such shenanigans cannot be ruled out.

Mario Götze Image credit: Imago

The second possibility is that he's desperate to stay in Germany for personal reasons, and rejected overtures from the likes of Liverpool on that basis. And if it is the case that he wants to remain in the Bundesliga, where else could he possibly move? For a player of his profile the only other club that might fit his ambition and wage expectations is Borussia Dortmund, but the fans – still angry after he walked away from them a few seasons ago – have made it clear that they're horrified at the prospect, even if Dortmund's CEO raised it as a possibility last month.

Dortmund fans were NOT happy when Mario Götze left... Image credit: Imago

Finally, there is third possibility: that Götze is utterly confident of playing himself back into contention for a starting spot at what is unarguably one of the finest football clubs in the world. Ancelotti is a famously warm personality; did he inadvertently charm Götze into staying by not making himself clear enough when sitting down to dish out the bad news about his plans for next season?

Carlo Ancelotti Image credit: AFP

Our view

The tone of Rummenigge's quotes to Kicker magazine is borderline incredulous: "Everything was clearly and seriously explained to Mario… Mario has to evaluate for himself whether he wants to play," he said.

That leaves little room for interpretation – and also seems to strike a note of shock on Rummenigge's part that a player would happily sit back and take the easy life on the bench rather than go elsewhere. Even if, as is implicit in the Bayern CEO's words, the club obviously want to cash in on a major asset and use the money elsewhere in the squad.

But Bayern can't sell if Götze won't go. And it's highly possible that the player is thinking of mixing all three possibilities at once. He can give it a crack under a new manager, trying to play his way into the side next season; if it goes well, he'll get to stay.

And if not? Well, the offer from Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool will probably still be on the table in 12 months' time, and will be all the more lucrative for the fact that there's no transfer fee to pay. And on top of that, by this time next year Liverpool might well be able to offer Götze the European football which he'd miss out on if he jumped ship now. All in all that's not a bad plan – even if it seems a terrible shame for one of the game's brightest young talents to waste away for another season.

2014, World Cup, Germany, Mario Goetze, Ann-Kathrin Brommel (Imago) Image credit: Imago

Additional reporting via Reuters

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