Daily Schmankerl: The aftermath of Bayern Munich vs. St Pauli; There’s a price on RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Šeško; FC Barcelona’s Hansi Flick wants to steal Alphonso Davies before he decides on Real Madrid; Potential problems at Chelsea?; and MORE!

Bayern Munich entered Millerntor-Stadion looking to take care of business against St. Pauli and while it was not always aesthetic, the Bavarians did just that with a 1-0 victory.

It was not a fulfilling victory, but it was one that Bayern Munich needed to maintain its lead in the Bundesliga. Here are some quick hitters on the match:

• As always, let’s take a look at Bayern Munich’s starting XI:

• Almost everything went as expected…except for Leon Goretzka getting the surprise start over João Palhinha. Otherwise, Leroy Sané and Kingsley Coman formed the winger pairing and Raphaël Guerreiro got the nod at right-back over Konrad Laime as Sacha Boey is still not ready.
• The early going saw Bayern Munich dominate play amid some brief moments of hope for St. Pauli, but it was very evident that the Bavarians were going to overwhelm the home side.
• For the most part, though, St.Pauli did just enough to keep things condensed and limit Bayern Munich’s shooting lanes. That extreme focus would prove detrimental in some ways, though, as Bayern Munich started to time its runs in order to get behind the St. Pauli backline with relative ease.
• St. Pauli would have enough of that nonsense and did put together a nice two-to-three minute stretch of possession around the 18th minute where they did give the Bavarians a bit of a headache.
• You really have to give St. Pauli credit for their commitment to mucking the game, which they were doing really well…until the 22nd minute when one bad break for the homeside led to a Bayern Munich goal.
• In the midst of the chaos that St. Pauli was creating, a lost possession by Alphonso Davies led to a scrum that saw Goretzka battling for (but ultimately losing) the ball. That brief sequence did, however, give Musiala enough time to strip the ball from the St. Pauli player from behind, turn, and rip off an absolute worldie of a shot that stung the crossbar and dove down into the net. What…a…goal!
• If you have not seen the play, you really need to.
• Because of how St. Pauli was playing, it was going to take a goal like that to open the game up a bit…even just a little. It also caused St. Pauli to get just a bit more aggressive as well.
• Some fans are going to be bitter about this result, but it was not wholly shocking. Once an organized low block is deployed, Bayern Munich’s issues with problem solving become apparent.
• While Bayern Munich did dominate possession (75%) and ripped off 10 more shots than St Pauli (13 total for the Bavarians), it was a very ho-hum way to dominate, which included some very uneasy moments.
• In a lot of ways Bayern Munich needs to be better…and more creative with its attack. They have to figure out how to be better against the muddle that St. Pauli made of the game. In short, it is a good time for a break.
• It should be noted that Joshua Kimmich was really good on the day.
• Overall, Bayern Munich was not great. Decent? Sure, but not great. There is something to be said for simply just piling up victories, but — sometimes — style points do matter. Bayern Munich had been on a run of battering lower-tier teams from the Bundesliga, but — once again — succumbed to a condensed low block, which suffocated some of the team’s creativity. Those tactics are not going away any time soon, so Kompany will need to find a way to defeat those strategies. And yes, much of that will fall on to the shoulders of the players, who just need to be better in working together.

If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast, give them a look or a listen:

RB Leipzig star Benjamin Šeško has been linked to many big clubs in Europe — including Bayern Munich. For him to leave, though, now we are getting an idea of what it would take:

Benjamin Šeško doesn’t have a release clause in his RB Leipzig contract, but he does have a “gentleman’s agreement” with the club over a potential exit next summer, Sky Sports Deutschland reports. The 21-year-old already has seven goals this season and has recently been linked with several Premier League sides, including Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea. Though the German club are not contractually obliged to let Šeško depart next summer, there is said to be an understanding that he is free to leave if an interested club submits an offer worth €70m-€75m.

Christopher Nkunku has had a productive season for Chelsea FC, but not one that has yielded a consistent spot in the starting XI. So far, it is not an issue:

Christopher #Nkunku is currently not planning a transfer this winter.

However, the 26y/o’s situation at #CFC is challenging. He is in top form and highly motivated, but despite scoring 10 goals in competitive matches this season, the French striker is not a regular starter.

If Nukunku‘s situation does not improve by the summer, a departure from Chelsea FC could become a possibility.

Bayern Munich is in the midst of a scorching hot stretch and Harry Kane has been a big part of the team’s success.

So why is Bayern Munich already seeking another striker when Kane’s deal does not end until 2027? Apparently, the planning has begun and there are a lot of options under consideration…but who will be the ultimate selection? That is a big question and we’ll discuss it.

• What should we make of the striker update?
• A #Project2026 update.
• Wingers are at the forefront of our discussion once again.
• An Entertainment Rundown — The Penguin dropped its penultimate episode and we learned a lot about ol’ Oz Cobb.

Former Bayern Munich coach and current FC Barcelona boss Hansi Flick could be plotting to bring in one of his old charges, which would hurt one of his big competitors in Europe (Bayern) and also his biggest competition domestically (Real Madrid, who has been closely linked to Davies for months):

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick wants to bring Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies to the club, according to Bild journalist Christian Falk. Davies, 24, is a free agent in the summer and is reportedly keen for a new challenge. Real Madrid currently lead the race to sign the Canada international, but Manchester United are also interested and the pair could make a €50m offer to sign him in January. Bayern are also keen to start talks over a new deal, but the lure of playing under his former manager Flick could see him head to Camp Nou.

ESPN’s Barcelona correspondent Sam Marsden provided insight as to where things stand with Barca and Davies:

Davies arguably played his best football at Bayern when Hansi Flick was in charge, so a reunion with his former coach at Barcelona would understandably be tempting. With his contract up in the summer, it also makes sense that all of Europe’s top clubs would be interested in landing one of the best left-backs in the game as a free agent.

Barça are among those clubs keen to strengthen in the full-back position. Jules Kounde has been converted from centre-back to right-back and young Alejandro Balde has returned from an injury layoff to reclaim the left-back role. The cover comes from two relatively untested players in Hector Fort and Gerard Martín. So you can see why Barça want to grow their full-back pool.

However, signing Davies also brings complications. Balde, at 21, is constantly improving and the arrival of the Canada international could halt his progression. The competition could help both players in the short-term, but it feels unsustainable in the long-term as both will want to be the No. 1 choice.

Barça are also keeping close tabs on young left-back Alex Valle, who is out on loan at Celtic, and his chances of making the grade would decrease if Davies signs. What seems like a no-brainer — signing a brilliant player who previously excelled under Flick for no cost — is not as simple as it appears on paper. And that’s before you add in the potential competition from Real Madrid, Manchester United and others.

Is Neymar in…or out in Saudi Arabia? You be the judge:

Contrary to talk of a contract termination, Neymar is set to remain at Al Hilal until next summer, reports Florian Plettenberg. Reports have recently suggested that the Saudi club are preparing to cut his time short, but the Brazilian superstar is “unaware of any such developments.” The 32-year-old is currently sidelined for six to eight weeks because of a muscle injury. But Plettenberg asserts Neymar’s main goal remains to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

On the flip side, El Nacional (via 90Min.com) says that Neymar is losing his mind in hopes of trying to join Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez at MLS power Inter Miami:

Neymar is ‘determined’ and ‘crazy’ to leave Al Hilal and reunite with former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez at Inter Miami.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Napoli have not advanced in their contract talks, which is not a problem just yet:

There is a stalemate in contract negotiations between Napoli and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, says Calciomercato, although there will soon be new meetings to try to find a solution. The 23-year-old’s agent has asked for a salary of €8m per season while Napoli are sticking to €5m. A move away could happen in the summer if a deal isn’t agreed, although Gli Azzurri aren’t considering that and would demand a fee of around €100m given his terms don’t expire until 2027.

It would never happen because of other moves in motion, but Kvaratskhelia at Bayern Munich would be unreal. The cost would be extremely prohibitive, though.

Bayern Munich pulled out a 1-0 victory over Benfica in the Champions League, but it was not easy.

It was a shaky start for the Bavarians, who — again — dominated play early on, but were unable to really break through. Here is what we have on tap for the Bavarian Podcast Works — Postgame Show:

• Some initial observations on how Bayern Munich managed to pull out a victory.
• What worked for Bayern Munich.
• What didn’t work for Bayern Munich.
• When will Bayern Munich’s dominance in possession result in more goals?
• The center-backs are looking good and handling what they are seeing.
• What to look for moving forward from Bayern Munich.