Could an old Bayern Munich prospect burn his old club?
Maybe.
Joshua Zirkzee, who recently made the move from Bologna to Manchester United, is trying to recruit his best pal, Jamal Musiala, to make the jump the Red Devils. Zirkzee and Musiala recently vacationed together per reports. Regardless, the Dutchman wants his buddy to join him as Manchester United seeks to revamp its attack:
Zirkzee made his come-up as one of Bayern’s top prospects, and is familiar with another top prospects at the organization who has become an even bigger star in world football than him, for Bayern no less.
That would be attacking midfielder Jamal Musiala, with whom Zirkzee trained with this summer. As transfer rumors swirl regarding Musiala’s long-term future amidst Bayern’s turmoil, the German international has been linked with Man United’s bitter rivals Manchester City as Kevin De Bruyne’s replacement.
But how about Musiala as a partner or even replacement for Bruno Fernandes? It’s only natural for fans to wonder if Zirkzee could play a role in helping Manchester United secure his friend and one of the absolute finest footballers in the world.
Zirkzee was asked this very question while signing an autograph for a fan, to which he cheekily replied that he has “tried” to pitch Manchester United to Jamal Musiala.
Musiala is going to get tempting offers next summer as a host of teams have — allegedly — expressed interest in the Germany international. Manchester City, Liverpool FC, FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid are among the clubs that have been loosely linked to Musiala…will Manchester United join them?
One of Germany’s best, young attacking talents — Hoffenheim forward Maximilian Beier — is drawing serious interest from Chelsea FC and Aston Villa per Sky Sport journalist Florian Plettenberg. Bayer Leverkusen is also in the mix as well:
Chelsea and Aston Villa have submitted concrete offers to Maximilian Beier ✔️
Two more top clubs from abroad have made contact in the last hours. Leverkusen, still in the race. But no club has started negotiations with Hoffenheim yet. No total verbal agreements with the player have been reached.
Final decision within the next 14 days. The 21 y/o talented striker with a release clause of €30m.
Plettenberg checked in with additional information as Juventus entered into the fray:
⚪️⚫️ Despite the concrete offers from Chelsea and Aston Villa, both clubs are currently not in the pole position to sign Maximilian Beier!
Juventus Turin, also there. Juve have inquired about the 21 y/o striker from Hoffenheim. First talks took place. TSG informed about it.
Decision soon. German striker Beier, open for a new challenge. Release clause €30m.
Beier is an interesting player and could be someone that might be a “Bayern Munich-type” of player in the future, but given the overabundance of attacking talent on the roster, the Bavarians are set to miss on a player who might turn out to be one of Germany’s brightest for the future.
Bayern Munich looks set to continue onward in its preseason knowing that changes are (maybe) coming.
An overloaded roster will eventually have to be addressed, but Vincent Kompany will have to deal with that, while also figuring out exactly what he has in this group and how he wants them to play.
That will be no easy task. Needless to say, we have a lot to chat about.
This is what we have on tap for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show:
- Is Bayern Munich’s front office taking an amateurish approach to this transfer window?
- João Palhinha looks and sounds like the real deal…can he avoid the pitfalls that have felled other big Bayern Munich signings?
- Despite the poor showings in friendlies, it is not time to panic at Bayern Munich just yet.
- Is it inevitable that Jamal Musiala leaves Bayern Munich next summer? Will Florian Wirtz replace him? Some things appear to be in motion, so let’s discuss.
FC Barcelona is open to selling Germany international İlkay Gündoğan:
lkay Gündogan is a candidate for sale at FC Barcelona. The Catalans would sell the DFB captain if a suitable offer came along. But Gündogan himself definitely wants to stay. He is not interested in the rumors about offers from the desert (Qatar, Saudi Arabia). His contract with Barça runs until 2025 – with an option for a further year on both sides.
Pascal Groß will be joining Borussia Dortmund from Brighton & Hove Albion:
⚫️ Pascal Groß to Borussia Dortmund, here we go! Deal agreed for 33 year old midfielder to join BVB.
Documents now ready between Brighton and BVB, set to be signed in 24/48h.#BHAFC to receive initial fee around €7m plus add-ons. pic.twitter.com/UOckVaPVBB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 30, 2024
Sky Sport reporter Florian Plettenberg says that the deal is just about done as well:
⚫️ Pascal Groß has arrived in Dortmund tonight!
Medical tomorrow. He will travel with the team to Bad Ragaz on Thursday.
Transfer fee: €7.5m + €2m add-ons. Contract until 2026 + 1 as reported.
Dortmund were pushing for Groß as excl. revealed in May. Now he’s a new player
of #BVB … ✔️
Bayern Munich are fresh off a meek 1-1 draw with fifth-tier team FC Düren and are rewarded with a long-term injury to Hiroki Ito. Vincent Kompany’s second game in charge has not inspired much confidence in his tenure but it’s still early days. otherwise he’s doing his best Julian Nagelsmann impression.
In this episode, RIPLT will discuss the following:
- A recap of the Düren game
- Scrutinizing player performances
- Calling Bayern out on their lack of game coverage and why it won’t help their brand
- A look at the transfer moves made by Bayern and their league rivals (Stuttgart, Dortmund, Leipzig)
- How Hiroki Ito’s injury leads to Jonathan Tah (again)
FC Barcelona looks like it will continue its efforts to sign RB Leipzig star Dani Olmo:
Barcelona had new contacts with Dani Olmo’s camp over the weekend and they’re preparing a new proposal to send to RB Leipzig, still discussed internally.
Barça, waiting for Nico Williams decision… but keeping Olmo option active. pic.twitter.com/QtCK2Goyb4
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 29, 2024
VfB Stuttgart’s hopes to bring back Deniz Undav could be in jeopardy:
⚪️ Excl | Deniz #Undav to VfB Stuttgart is close to be OFF! Deal is in jeopardy!
⚠️ Brighton have rejected a new offer from
@VfB of €27-30m in the last days as Brighton want more for their 28 y/o striker!
Even with this offer, Undav would have been the most expensive transfer in VfB’s history. Stuttgart boss Fabian Wohlgemuth now exploring other options.
@_dennisbayer | @SkySportDE
Plettenberg also had additional information on what VfB Stuttgart might do if it truly cannot get Undav back:
⚪️ In case the transfer of Deniz #Undav to VfB Stuttgart falls 100 % through, the club currently considering four strong alternatives:
▫️Niclas Füllkrug
▫️Adam Hlozek
▫️Arnaud Kalimuendo
▫️Orri Oskarsson
Brighton rejected €27-30m for Undav in recent days as revealed. VfB don’t want to pay more at this stage. It now depends on Brighton.
@_dennisbayer | @SkySportDE
The Vincent Kompany Era is underway and fans got their first game day taste of what Bayern Munich might be when the squad dismantled FC Rottach-Egern 14-1.
Even that beatdown did not calm some of the uneasiness that fans have been feeling about how things are progressing during this offseason. So, let’s talk about that and a lot more on this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show. This is what we have on tap:
- Bayern Munich never really had a shot with Xavi Simons — and what that tells us about Max Eberl.
- It’s okay to be caught somewhere between uneasy and excited about the team at the moment.
- At this stage, there might not be any difference making transfers that will help the team this season.
- Takes on House of the Dragon and Cobra Kai…and a few other random thoughts.