Red Bull Salzburg bids farewell to captain Bidstrup – Mazurek arrives, Yeo departs

Sporting director Marcus Mann explained the background of the move: „Mit dem Ende der abgelaufenen Saison sind Mads Bidstrup und sein Management mit dem Wunsch an uns herangetreten, den Klub zu wechseln. Letztlich haben sich die Gespräche mit Mads, aber auch jene mit Olympique Lyon so positiv gestaltet, dass wir diesem Transfer zugestimmt haben. Wir bedanken uns bei Mads für seinen Einsatz und seinen Willen, hier in Salzburg etwas zu bewegen, und wünschen ihm bei seinem neuen Klub alles Gute!"

Background on the move

Bidstrup had come to Salzburg in 2023 for six million euros from English club FC Brentford and made 116 competitive appearances over three years for the Red Bulls, scoring four goals and providing five assists. His contract in Salzburg would have run until 2029. In Lyon – which was recently taken over by Michele Kang and aims to return to Ligue 1 under coach Paulo Fonseca – the Dane signed a contract until 2031.

Bidstrup himself thanked the club, the team, the coaching staff and the fans: „Die Zeit in Salzburg war für mich etwas ganz Besonderes. Auch wenn es letztendlich sportlich nicht so gelaufen ist, wie wir uns alle das erhofft haben, durfte ich hier viele unvergessliche Momente erleben. Ich bin dem Klub, meinen Mitspielern, dem Staff und unseren Fans sehr dankbar für die Unterstützung in den vergangenen drei Jahren und werde diese Zeit immer in besonderer Erinnerung behalten."

Mazurek arrives from Poland

With Bidstrup, the ninth player leaves Salzburg in the ongoing squad overhaul – not counting the earlier move to the farm team FC Liefering. Overall, the club brought in €64 million in transfer revenue last season and invested around €30 million in eight new signings.

As a replacement for the departing captain, Salzburg on Wednesday presented 19-year-old Polish attacking midfielder Bartosz Mazurek, who joins from Jagiellonia Bialystok, a Polish top-flight side. Mazurek signed a contract running until 30 June 2031. Last season, the young Pole made 35 appearances in the Polish Ekstraklasa, scoring four goals and providing three more. Internationally, he drew attention with a hat-trick in a 4-2 away win in the Conference League against AC Fiorentina in February.

Mann expressed his conviction about the new signing: „Mit ihm konnten wir einen talentierten, technisch gut ausgebildeten und gegen den Ball sehr fleißigen Spieler verpflichten, der auch schon einiges an Erfahrung auf hohem Niveau gesammelt hat. Ich bin überzeugt, dass er bei uns seinen Weg machen wird." At the time of the report, Mazurek was the most recently announced new signing for Salzburg.

Yeo moves to Wales

Also on Wednesday, Red Bull Salzburg announced the transfer of 22-year-old Moussa Yeo to Welsh club Swansea City, who play in the English second tier (EFL Championship). Yeo, who had come to Salzburg from his native Mali four years ago and contributed nine goals and seven assists in 70 appearances, is, according to Mann, ready for the next step in his development. „Zeit für einen nächsten Schritt", said the sporting director.

Sportingly, the past season was a disappointment for Salzburg: the club, regarded as the „Liga-Krösus" of the Austrian Bundesliga, finished the league in third place – missing out on the top two for the first time since the 2004/05 season. On 2 October 2025, Bidstrup had still lost 0-2 with the team in the Europa League away at Olympique Lyon; a reunion will now take place at club level.

Outlook on the new season

With Bidstrup's departure, Salzburg loses, in its own words, a cornerstone of last season, in which he bore responsibility on the pitch as captain. The Dane's move to France is part of a mutually desired separation and follows the player's wish to change his sporting environment.

Overall, the three simultaneous personnel cases – Bidstrup, Mazurek and Yeo – illustrate the personnel rebuild at Salzburg that has been underway for weeks. With the revenues from the sale of Bidstrup and other departures, the club is simultaneously financing new signings such as Mazurek, thus keeping itself competitive for the coming season.