Daily Schmankerl: Real Madrid wants Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich, but is it a fit?; Karim Adeyemi staying at Borussia Dortmund; Neymar headed home; Bayer Leverkusen eyeing Evan Ferguson; Angelo Stiller extends deal with VfB Stuttgart; and MORE!

Real Madrid has not been able to lock down a deal for Liverpool FC star Trent Alexander-Arnold, so it could turn to Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich to fill the void:

Real Madrid are reportedly “angry” with how Liverpool star, Trent Alexander-Arnold, has acted amid their growing interest, and they have sounded out the prospect of signing Bayern Munich ace, Joshua Kimmich, instead, as per Sky Sports Switzerland.

Los Blancos have been chasing a new right-back for the best part of a year now, with it being revealed in March 2024 that the Reds’ man was a priority target. Alexander-Arnold’s contract is due to expire at the end of this season, which has thrust his future at Anfield under the spotlight, though he has delayed making a conclusive decision thus far.

Real Madrid had approached Liverpool at the start of the January transfer window in an attempt to sign Alexander-Arnold immediately. However, as noted by Fabrizio Romano, the Merseyside outfit had no intention of opening negotiations, and were still persistent in their attempts to keep the 26-year-old.

According to the report from Sky Sports Switzerland, the “slowdown in discussions” has frustrated Madrid, who had hoped to seal a deal this month. It is thought that they have now considered a move for Kimmich with two particular incentives in mind.

The German would be the purported backup, should a deal for Alexander-Arnold fall through in any case, while additionally, the La Liga outfit hope that such negotiations with Kimmich will divert attention away from their primary target.

The primary issue with this report is that it is extremely doubtful that Kimmich would make a move to Real Madrid just to return to playing right-back. At this point, Kimmich seems set on finishing his career in the central midfield.

Borussia Dortmund star Karim Adeyemi might not be going anywhere after all, despite links to Napoli:

Aside of Napoli, Adeyemi was also linked to Chelsea FC and Liverpool FC per Corriere dello Sport (via ESPN):

Chelsea and Liverpool are ready to rival Napoli for the signing of Bayer Leverkusen forward Karim Adeyemi.

After last week’s Champions League disaster-class vs. Feyenoord, Bayern Munich rebounded with a Bundesliga win over SC Freiburg. Now, though, the Bavarians will host Slovan Bratislava in a match they need to win.

Of course, Bayern Munich’s ultimate fate will not be determined until many other results play out, but it all starts with a win in this match. Let’s talk about all of that and more on the Bavarian Podcast Works — Preview Show. This is what we have on tap:

• A look at the recent form of each team and where they fall in the Champions League table.
• A look at the rosters and injuries for ŠK Slovan Bratislava and Bayern Munich.
• A guess at Bayern Munich’s starting XI.
• A prediction on the match.

Neymar is leaving Saudi Arabia and heading home to Brazil:

Bayer Leverkusen could be poised to make a stunner of a transfer move by “exploring” a deal for Brighton & Hove Albion striker Evan Ferguson:

⚫️ Bayer 04 Leverkusen are exploring a deal to sign Evan #Ferguson as per colleague @markmcadamtv and confirmed.

Understand Brighton have been informed of the interest but have not yet decided whether they will let him leave before the Deadline Day. Contract until 2029.

The 20-year-old Brighton striker is one of the top candidates to replace Victor Boniface, who is on the verge of moving to Al-Nassr. Leverkusen with more options but Ferguson is high on the list.

The Bundesliga Rundown is about to turn 20! But before that, this episode will highlight Matchday 19, which, according to Marcus, was the most exciting one yet!

This episode will tackle the following questions:

• Is Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz the best player on the planet?
• Has Bayern Munich already won the league?
• Is Freiburg’s defence too shaky for them to secure a European spot?
• Should Dortmund hire Ange Postecoglou or Erik ten Hag?
• … and much more!

Former Bayern Munich prospect Angelo Stiller re-upped with VfB Stuttgart and received a deal that includes a release clause:

Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface looks like he is headed to Al-Nassr:

A little bit later, Plettenberg doubled down on the report and said a total agreement had been reach by all parties:

Excl | Victor #Boniface will join @AlNassrFC with immediate effect!

Total agreement with Bayer 04 Leverkusen now has been reached about a final transfer fee of more than €60m. Verbal agreement was done. €15m net per season as revealed today.

24 y/o striker has already passed his medical with Al-Nassr.

Exclusive news from last week, set to be confirmed soon. ✔️

@SkySportDE

Bayern Munich bounced back with a win over SC Freiburg, but not everything is sitting pretty at the moment.

The Bavarians are not exactly a well-oiled machine in the attack at the moment and the coach has been a bit resistant to rotate. It can get a lot better, but will it? We think so, but the club is going to have to do a better job of moving on from things that don’t work. Let’s dive in. This is what we have on tap for this episode of the Bavarian Podcast Works Show:

• Some final takeaways on Bayern Munich’s win over SC Freiburg.
• Is Bayern Munich setting the bar too low for itself? Does the club need to separate itself from underachieving players?
• Transfer deadline takes on Jonas Urbig, Mathys Tel, Christopher Nkunku, Dean Huijsen.
• Maybe less is more when it comes to talking about Joshua Kimmich’s future.