AMSTERDAM – According to his agent, transfer interest in wantaway 1860 Munich forward Bobby Wood has expanded beyond the German border and to other parts of Europe.
MLSsoccer.com has confirmed that offers sit on the table from Fortuna Düsseldorf, Alfredo Morales' Ingolstadt, Kaiserslautern, Union Berlin and at least one other club in Germany's top two flights. Prior interest from Bundesliga survivors Stuttgart seems to have died down, but now top-flight sides from other European countries have entered the fray.
On Wednesday night, Munich daily TZ reported that teams from England, Italy and Spain had registered interest in Wood. While his agent would not discuss specific countries, he did concede that the German bidders now have foreign competition for the US international's services.
"Of course, there are some possibilities in Germany," Wood rep Robert Schneider told MLSsoccer.com. "He also has some interest from outside Germany."
The agent reiterated that Wood, who reportedly carries a seven-figure price tag despite starting the final year of his 1860 deal, would like to leave the Allianz Arena this summer.
"That is no secret," said Schneider. "We will see what happens in the coming weeks."
Through it all, Lions boss Torsten Fröhling continues to insist he wants Wood back in the fold for the upcoming season.
"He has athletic qualities; I need him," the manager told German reporters following Wednesday's training session. "But he must feel comfortable. Only then can he continue to evolve. He is our player now, and as long as that does not change, he will work here just like anyone else."
Having returned from a six-month loan spell at demoted Erzgebirge Aue, Wood joined Lions preseason training on Tuesday. The 22-year-old Hawaii native then missed out on Thursday's session with a minor knock. It is unclear at this time whether or not he will make the squad for Friday's friendly with Swiss champs Basel.
"Bobby paused because of a little injury during training yesterday," 1860 press officer Lil Zercher told MLSsoccer.com on Thursday. "So he just cycled today. There's no final decision if he`ll play [against Basel]."
