Manchester City first made contact over the Bayern midfielder as far back as March, according to the Bild Bayern Insider podcast, identifying him as their top target to replace Rodri following the Spaniard's move to Barcelona.
Manager Enzo Maresca was personally involved in the pursuit, and the club were prepared to pay up to €100m for the 22-year-old, but Pavlović made clear after a period of consideration that he had no intention of leaving Bayern.
City reporter Christian Falk said the rejection caught the Premier League club off guard.
"They didn't expect that," Falk said. "They would probably also have been ready to negotiate an even higher sum with Bayern."
Because no formal offer was ever submitted, Bayern Munich's role in the saga was limited to being kept informed of City's interest rather than fielding an actual bid.
With Pavlović unmoved, City turned their attention elsewhere, ultimately completing a considerably more expensive summer rebuild of their midfield. Elliot Anderson joined from Nottingham Forest for £135m, Ayyoub Bouaddi arrived from Lille for £100m, and Enzo Fernández was signed from Chelsea for £146m — a combined outlay dwarfing the fee City had been willing to pay for Pavlović alone.
Pavlović, a boyhood Bayern supporter born and raised in Munich, has established himself as a key player under Vincent Kompany, making 15 senior appearances for Germany and signing a contract at the Allianz Arena that runs until 2029.
Close friendships within the Bayern dressing room, including with fellow academy graduates Tom Bischof and Lennart Karl, were also said to have factored into his decision to remain, alongside a stated ambition to win the Champions League with the club that developed him.
The midfielder has made 102 appearances for Bayern's first team since graduating from the academy in 2023, contributing eight goals and six assists along the way and establishing himself as a regular starter last season.
His rejection of City underlines the growing financial muscle clubs like Bayern can now bring to bear in retaining homegrown talent, with reports suggesting the German champions were never seriously tempted to sanction a sale even at the sums City were discussing.