Jonathan Tah has confirmed he will be leaving Bayer Leverkusen as a free agent when his contract expires at the end of the season.

“Everything was said from the start. There was a point in time when I made the decision not to extend my contract and not to stay here”.

“It remains that way now”, the German defender told Kicker.

The future of the 29-year-old defender has unsurprisingly been a subject of heavy speculation for several months now, and his destination remains unknown to the public at this point. Set to become a free agent, he has been linked strongly with Bayern Munich and Barcelona, though the likes of Real Madrid, Liverpool and Manchester United have been credited with interest as well.

In all competitions, he’s set to cross the 400-game mark for Leverkusen, having already played 398 times for the club, scoring 19 goals and contributing 13 assists. He’s been a regular starter under Xabi Alonso and played a major role in Leverkusen’s Bundesliga triumph last season. He has represented Germany on 35 occasions.