In summer 2024, VfB Stuttgart lost three key performers from the previous season following a stellar campaign when Waldemar Anton, Serhou Guirassy, and Hiroki Ito departed to Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich respectively. The Bundesliga rivals were able to pick from Stuttgart's squad because the trio had negotiated exit clauses into their contracts. However, the club intends to put an end to this practice going forward.

According to Sport Bild's Wednesday edition, the supervisory board of VfB Stuttgart has decided that future contract negotiations will no longer include exit options. Currently, only two players in the squad possess such options: Angelo Stiller, who could leave next summer for approximately 40 million euros, and Bilal El Khannouss, who has a clause valued at 75 million euros.

While Stuttgart secured the opportunity to buy out Stiller's exit clause for around three million euros, it is currently unlikely that any interested party would pay the set fee for El Khannouss. Defender Ramon Hendriks could be the first Stuttgart star affected by the new policy of not granting exit options to top players.

VfB Stuttgart: Negotiations with Hendriks underway

According to the sports publication, Stuttgart is working to extend the centre-back's contract, which runs until 2028, ahead of schedule. The Dutch defender, who joined Stuttgart from Rotterdam for just 750,000 euros in 2024, is reportedly demanding a substantial increase to his current annual salary of 1.8 million euros—and an exit clause.

While the Hendriks negotiations could prove tricky, a winter departure appears to be looming for Jamie Leweling. According to Bild, Stuttgart is open to the six-time international leaving, particularly after he did not receive an invitation from national team manager Jürgen Klopp for the current international break. Stuttgart has already set a price tag for Leweling: the club would be willing to negotiate from 30 million euros upward.

Background: Stuttgart's leadership is keen to generate revenue to offset the expenses from an expensive summer transfer window. The club spent a total of 55 million euros on new signings at that time.