According to a report from kicker journalist Frank Linkesch (as captured by @iMiaSanMia), Bayern Munich is shifting away from planning for the future with its transfer strategy and choosing more of a “win now” philosophy.
Per Linkesch, this is evident in how Bayern Munich is choosing to pursue Bayer Leverkusen center-back Jonathan Tah and Paris Saint-Germain attacker Xavi Simons, who spent last season on loan with RB Leipzig, rather than players like Mainz 05’s Brajan Gruda and Schalke 04’s Assan Ouédraogo:
Bayern have decided that the priority in the upcoming transfer window should be for players who would help the team immediately and increase the quality of the squad. Jonathan Tah – an established Bundesliga defender – and Xavi Simons – a rising star – are in this category. That’s also why the club is holding back when it comes to youngsters like Assan Ouédraogo and Brajan Gruda, who would cost a significant financial package but wouldn’t be an immediate reinforcement.
The rumors surrounding Tah definitely present an interesting scenario. The club reportedly wants to add a left-footed center-back like Tah to compliment the current crop of right-footers: Matthijs de Ligt, Eric Dier, Kim Min-jae, and Dayot Upamecano. In theory, that seems like a logical move, but breaking up the duo of De Ligt and Dier does present some risk.
In addition, Bayern Munich would effectively be putting a for sale sign on either Upamecano or Min-jae by adding Tah. Upamecano is rumored to be open to a move, but Min-jae seems reluctant at this point.
Meanwhile, over on the midfield and attacking side, the rumors regarding Simons are interesting. Able to play as an attacking midfielder or wing, Simons will come at a steep cost and could be redundant to some other players on the roster. Regardless, one thing is becoming crystal clear, change is coming.
One thing to keep an eye on is not just the contracts expiring in 2025 (Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller, Leroy Sané, Joshua Kimmich, Alphonso Davies), but also those in 2026 (Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry, Raphaël Guerreiro, Jamal Musiala, Dayot Upamecano, Noussair Mazraoui), who could also become serious candidates for being sold this summer. Kingsley Coman (2027) is also a prime option for a sale as well.
It might seem odd to include Musiala on that list — and, admittedly, it is a long shot for him to be sold this summer — but it is becoming clear that the allure of Spain and England is starting to penetrate the youngster.
With so many changes already during his time in Bavaria, Musiala has never really experienced the stability one might expect at a club like Bayern Munich. As his legend continues to grow, so does Musiala’s price tag for a salary and his attractiveness to other clubs.
It will not happen this summer, but the Bavarians might have to start contingency planning for two different futures — one that includes Musiala and one where he leaves in 2025.
Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show: Season 3, Episode 47
There is a lot of moving and shaking going on at Bayern Munich and the German national team these days, which means there is a lot to talk about. This is what we have on tap for the latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show:
- Vincent Kompany wants to play a 4-4-2 (hmmm), sell some wingers (yeah!), and has six players targeted for five positions (Paris Saint-Germain’s Xavi Simons, Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah, FC Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong, VfB Stuttgart’s Chris Führich, VfB Stuttgart, Fulham’s João Palhinha, and Everton’s Amadou Onana). What does all of this mean? Let’s discuss.
- Are we in the final days of Joshua Kimmich being a player at Bayern Munich?
- Is Julian Nagelsmann’s loyalty to İlkay Gündoğan going to cost him…and the German national team?
- A little bit of the Entertainment Rundown.
Nübel in danger of Germany cut
According to a report from Bild (as captured by @iMiaSanMia), Alexander Nübel could be the German national team player who gets cut in the coming days:
Alexander Nübel is now the number one candidate to be dropped from the final Euros squad today. The DFB sent the shirt numbers for the Greece game to UEFA this morning. Only three goalkeepers have been nominated: Manuel Neuer (#1), Marc-André ter Stegen (#22) and Oliver Baumann (#12). Nübel has no shirt number for the game. Should Nagelsmann end up deciding to take 4 goalkeepers to the tournament, Robin Koch, Maximilian Beier and Chris Führich are the players in danger of being dropped.
Sky Sport journalist Florian Plettenberg is also reporting that Nübel is probably the odd-man out:
BREAKING | Alexander Nübel is being dropped from the final Euro squad of the German national team!
Julian Nagelsmann has changed his plans at short notice. Originally, he wanted to take four goalkeepers. Now, Nübel has to go. Confirmed. One of the best goalkeepers of this Bundesliga season.
Nübel is out as also via @BILD.
Therefore, the five uncertain candidates remain in the team: Koch, Raum, Beier, Pavlovic and Führich!
@SkySportDE
For his part, Nübel seems to have an idea that things might not work out his way.
“It could still happen. To be honest, I just don’t know. It’s clear that there are more changes in the outfield positions during a tournament than in goal. Maybe Julian will tell himself now, shortly before the start, that three keepers are enough for him because he wants more flexibility on the pitch. I will give everything until the last second, I can’t do more than that,” Nübel told t-online (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).
Song of the Week: “Murder on the Dance Floor” by Royel Otis
In taking a break from the 90’s kick that I’ve been on, I shifted over to a new tune, “Murder on the Dance Floor” by Royel Otis, which is a cover of the Sophie Ellis-Bextor 2001 song.
I am always up for a good cover and I think Royel Otis hit this one out of the park by putting a little bit different of a spin on it. Enjoy:
Bavarian Podcast Works: Postgame Show — Germany 0-0 Ukraine
Germany swung and swung relentlessly at Ukraine, but the Ukrainian defense decided to honour their fellow countryman and recently crowned undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk by maneuvering expertly around all the offense thrown at them with excellent blocks and weaves.
In this episode of the Postgame Show, Cyler (Rayyan) goes over the game, including:
- The starting XIs and general shape of both Germany and Ukraine.
- The tactical decisions made by head coach Julian Nagelsmann, namely those seemingly made to conserve the players.
- How Germany are beginning to break into the final third, but are failing to break through when in the final third.
- Some exciting individual performances from Maximilian Beier and Maximilian Mittelstädt.
- Some worrying individual performances from Kai Havertz and İlkay Gündoğan.
- The social dynamics of the team, and how Gündoğan’s captaincy is likely more important behind the scenes than on the pitch.
Entertainment Rundown
Shogun
Episodes 3 through 6
- The storyline is very rich and it takes a lot of investment to really get an understanding of each character and their respective backgrounds. Maybe more than most shows, this does require some time. So far, it has been worth it.
- While I’m enjoying the show, it is still a very slow burn that would probably test the patience of some viewers.
- The character Yoshii Toranaga is the real scene stealer of the show. The actor (Hiroyuki Sanada) has been fantastic.
- The improbable return of Buntaro set the stage or some extreme awkwardness surrounding Toda Mariko and John Blackthorne after their “encounter.”
- Some folks would point to the Buntaro-Mariko-Blackthorne situation and Yoshi Nagakado’s brash decision-making to essentially start a war as typical plot triggers, but they work within the framework of this storyline.
- Overall, I am really enjoying it and am expecting things to escalate in action soon enough. My only fear is that Shogun follows the unfortunate way of The Last of Us which started slow, gave good background stories to characters, and then never really captured any momentum to get a viewer’s interest. Shogun certainly has a chance to do that. We’ll see if it does in the coming episodes.