There has been a lot of speculation about what Bayern Munich might be doing with its squad planning in the comings months — especially heading into the 2025 summer transfer window.
There are two steps that the Bavarians are — allegedly — looking to achieve for 2025:
- Sign Jamal Musiala to a contract extension.
- Sign Bayer Leverkusen ace Florian Wirtz (and spend nine figures in doing so).
Per the latest rumors, this is what Bayern Munich is aiming to do to set itself up for the 2025/26 campaign. The Bavarians are seeking to bring together Germany’s top two talents on one club. It is not inconceivable for Bayern Munich to make those two things happen.
Assuming that Bayern Munich can win a trophy this season or next, that will also put Harry Kane entering the final season of his deal in the 2026/27 campaign. Achieving his goal could allow Kane to start to think about a return home.
Undoubtedly, the Bavarians would like to get something in return for Kane if he is planning on returning to England a year early. If Kane wins a title, he will see his time in Germany as productive, worthwhile, and successful — and maybe start to think about a move back to the Premier League.
Ever the family man, that should give Kane the incentive to return to England as a conquering hero and also allow him the opportunity to chase Alan Shearer’s Premier League career goal-scoring record.
Should Bayern Munich look to hold on to him to play out his deal — or should the Bavarians let him waltz back to England a year early and turn its attention to acquiring a younger striker to team with Wirtz and Musiala (if Bayern Munich lands the Bayer Leverkusen star in 2025)?
It might not be that difficult of a decision at that point — but who should Bayern Munich pursue if it finds itself in that position?
How about Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, whose contract also ends in 2027 — making it the perfect time to re-tool the striker position with a younger, more explosive center-forward.
I know…I know: “They already tried this three years ago!”
This time, it might just be different.
Bayern Munich would be surrounding Haaland with two of the premier playmakers in Europe, plus what will assuredly be a strong cast of characters designed to support that haymaker-throwing attacking group.
Real Madrid, Haaland’s top destination, is already tied up with too many high maintenance attackers (and it is unlikely we see any of them leave by that point). FC Barcelona is a threat (especially with Robert Lewandowski being close to aging out), but finances are always an issue for the Catalans.
So…why not Bayern Munich for the big Norwegian?
It could work if the Bavarians are financially equipped to make it happen. The club missed on Haaland once when it was caught between keeping Lewandowski and starting over with someone new.
To become the most dominant team in Europe, it cannot miss on another chance to get Haaland. It might seem like a stretch think about a trio of Haaland, Musiala, and Wirtz leading Bayern Munich,but damn, it sure is nice to dream isn’t it?
Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show Season 4, Episode 11
Bayern Munich has a massive game ahead with Bayer Leverkusen, but there is so much going on with this squad that we have plenty to discuss.
What better place to do that than with Bavarian Podcast Works. This is what we have on tap for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show:
- More on the build-up to Bayern Munich vs. Bayer Leverkusen.
- What happens if Bayern Munich’s backline gets smoked against Bayer Leverkusen? What does it mean if it holds strong?
- Assessing the odd-men out on the Bayern Munich roster: Leon Goretzka, Konrad Laimer, Mathys Tel, and Eric Dier.
- Assessing Jamal Musiala’s rumored contract demands.
- Where things stand with Bayern Munich’s interest in Florian Wirtz.
- Quickly catching up on where we are with the Game of Thrones re-watch.
Song of the Week: “Only” by Nine Inch Nails
We are traveling back to 2005 for this week’s song. Released in 2005 by Nine Inch Nails, “Only” has a really ominous sound to it and explodes — at times — in that signature NIN way.
Written because of Trent Reznor internal conflict in trying to sort out what the music business was demanding from him vs. what he wanted to do artistically, “Only” definitely captures a lot of the singer/songwriter’s conflicted rage. Enjoy (the clean version…if you want the explicit version, check this link):
Entertainment Rundown
Game of Thrones
Much like the army of the dead breached “The Wall” at the end of Season 7, I broke through season 8 last night. I am close to finishing this monster (again) and will put together the column and podcast to break it all down upon compiling all my notes.
Sounds like some empty George RR Martin promise doesn’t it? I kid, I kid.
The Last of Us
Admittedly, I really soured on this video game-turned-HBO show. While the cast is strong, the storytelling and writing was not.
I will probably give it another chance, but I’m already teetering on whether or not it will be worth the time. Here is the first trailer for the new season:
The Penguin
HBO/Max debuted its new show, The Penguin, a couple of weeks back. The character is based in the universe of “The Batman”, which was very good and starred emo-Batman Robert Pattinson, plus a very interesting take on the character of The Riddler.
Is it worth the watch?
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Bavarian Podcast Works — Preview Show: Bayern Munich vs. Bayer Leverkusen
Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen is the marquee matchup in the Bundesliga so far this season and will feature two excellent teams, led by two coaches making big impacts with their respective squads.
Let’s take a look at the breakdown for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Preview Show:
- Some thoughts on how excited we should all be for this.
- Why this match will tell us a lot about both teams.
- A look at where each team is in the table and the recent form of each squad.
- A look at the rosters and injuries for Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich.
- A guess at Bayern Munich’s starting XI.
- A prediction on the match.
Predictions
Bundesliga
This is the game we have all been waiting for.
It should be a barnburner featuring the two best teams in the league. Each squad will learn a lot about itself and how it deals with this specific opponent. The gut feeling right now is that Bayern Munich is a little bit better and more complete of a team than Bayer Leverkusen at the moment, so we will ride the wave of moment that the Rekordmeister has built up.
Prediction: Bayern Munich 3-2 Bayer Leverkusen
Other Bundesliga Predictions:
- Borussia Dortmund 3-1 VfL Bochum
- Mainz 05 2-2 Heidenheim
- Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-1 Union Berlin
- RB Leipzig 3-0 FC Augsburg
- SC Freiburg 2-1 St. Pauli
- VfL Wolfsburg 2-3 VfB Stuttgart
- Holstein Kiel 1-3
- Hoffenheim 1-0 We\rder Bremen
Champions League
The Bavarians will hit the road to face off with Aston Villa in what should be a very good match-up for what could be an emotionally drained Bayern Munich squad. Fresh off of what should be a highly emotional game with Bayern Leverkusen. This could prove to be a tough match against a disciplined side. As it stands, Bayern Munich is just better at the moment and should be able to pull out a road victory.
Prediction: Aston Villa 1-3 Bayern Munich
Other Champions League predictions include:
- RB Salzburg 2-1 Brest
- VfB Stuttgart 3-1 Sparta Praha
- Arsenal 2-1 Paris Saint-Germain
- FC Barcelona 4-0 Young Boys
- Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 AC Milan
- Borussia Dortmund 2-1 Celtic
- Inter Milan 4-0 FK Crvena zvezda
- PSV Eindhoven 1-1 Sporting CP
- ŠK Slovan Bratislava 0-7 Manchester City
- Girona 2-1 Feyenoord
- Shakhtar Donetsk 1-3 Atalanta
- Benfica 1-1 Atlético Madrid
- GNK Dinamo Zagreb 1-3 AS Monaco
- Lille 0-3 Real Madrid
- Liverpool FC 3-0 Bologna
- RB Leipzig 2-1 Juventus
- SK Sturm Graz 2-2 Club Brugge KV
Prediction Records
- Last Week Bundesliga: 4-5
- Overall Bundesliga: 18-18
- UEFA Nations League: 23-20
- Champions League: 12-6
- DFB-Pokal: 26-6
- Total: 79-50
- Perfect Picks: 12 (when the score and winner is predicted exactly)
