Benjamin Pavard caught drink-driving, fined by Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich defender Benjamin Pavard was caught drink-driving by the police six weeks ago, according to Bild.

They took away the player’s driver’s license after the incident. The Bavarian club and relevant authorities also fined Pavard for his reckless actions.

Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic reportedly intervened two days after the incident. The Bosnian put a five-figure sanction on the French international defender.

Pavard is reportedly unhappy and frustrated with his role at Bayern.

Since arriving from Stuttgart in 2019 for €35 million, he has been a regular in the team. He has played mainly as a right-back and also as a centre-back.

But former Ajax right-back Noussair Mazraoui has taken his starting berth in the past few weeks, relegating the 26-year-old to the bench.

Julian Nagelsmann has preferred Dayot Upamecano and summer signing Matthijs De Ligt at centre-back.

Pavard is considering his future, and a move away from the Allianz Arena is on the cards. He has interest from Barcelona and several other European clubs.

He does not want to extend his contract beyond 2024, and there are no concrete talks with the Bundesliga champions over an extension. 

Pavard has won the Champions League, three Bundesliga titles and the DFB-Pokal during his time at the club. He has made 138 appearances for Bayern, scoring eight and assisting 11.

Pavard is a World Cup and Nations League winner with France. He has made 46 appearances for Les Bleus under Didier Deschamps since his debut in 2017.

He has scored two goals (including the goal of the tournament at the 2018 World Cup) and assisted three more.

Pavard’s aerial ability and reading of the game are good and allow him to excel despite his slight physicality.

He is assured on the ball with some of the best progressive numbers in Europe.

Pavard would be an attractive pick-up for any of the big European teams if they can negotiate a decent fee with Bayern.