Manchester United looks like it will be in the running for Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies and Leroy Sané, but not Leon Goretzka.
With both Davies and Sané able to leave Bavaria on free transfers, the Red Devils could be looking to make a big splash without having to lay down a lot of cash:
Manchester United are reportedly interested in FC Bayern Munich’s star players Alphonso Davies and Leroy Sané.
According to reports from fussball.news, the Red Devils have shown keen interest in both Davies and Sané, whose contracts with Bayern expire in 2025. This could make them appealing targets, especially as they could negotiate freely starting January 2025. However, contrary to some speculation, Leon Goretzka is currently off United’s radar.
Despite his uncertain future at Bayern and the club’s openness to a potential transfer, fussball.news confirms that United are not pursuing the 29-year-old midfielder at this stage. Goretzka, under contract until 2026, has expressed his desire to stay and continue fighting for his place in Munich, at least through the winter. Bayern’s prospect of losing Davies and Sané could prove costly. If negotiations don’t lead to contract extensions, the duo could leave on free transfers by January 2025, a situation they will be eager to avoid.
However, players’ salaries could be one potential stumbling block for any move. Both Sané and Goretzka currently earn substantial wages, with Sané earning an estimated €20 million and Goretzka about €18 million, including bonuses. Even Davies, with demands reportedly around €16 million, could face challenges securing these figures elsewhere.
Previous Bayern-to-Manchester transfers, such as Matthijs de Ligt’s, involved salary reductions, and similar compromises may be required if these players are to join the Premier League. While United’s interest in Davies and Sané appears genuine, it remains to be seen whether financial negotiations and the Bavarian club’s efforts to retain them will shape the outcome.
While Davies is almost assuredly gone, Sané’s situation is less clear. It was assumed that the winger would extend his deal, but he has yet to make headway working under Vincent Kompany and will likely be asked to take a pay cut. This could make talks tense.
As for Goretzka, he just needs to move on from Bayern Munich.
Napoli is attempting to extend the contract of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, but the Georgian has suitors:
Multiple clubs are watching the contract situation of Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, reports Calciomercato. The Serie A club are believed to be continuing talks to sign the 23-year-old to a contract extension, but it is said that Paris Saint-Germain as well as teams in the Premier League are willing to make a move to sign him if he doesn’t pen a new deal at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.
Specifically, Manchester United is keeping an eye on the talented attacker (per Tuttomercatoweb via 90Min.com):
Scouts from Man Utd watched Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and centre-back Alessandro Buongiorno in action recently.
Bayern Munich will look to bounce back from its Champions League defeat at the hands of FC Barcelona with a Bundesliga game against a VfL Bochum squad that is in complete turmoil.
Will Bayern Munich play angry and show resilience or will they sulk and meander through an unmotivated effort against an inferior team? The feeling here is that the Bavarians are going to want to show…something. Heart? Energy? Whatever…Bayern Munich should be playing with a purpose and that will create issues for VfL Bochum.
This is what we have on tap for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Preview Show:
- Why VfL Bochum is the perfect “get right” game for Bayern Munich.
- 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 VfL Bochum and the Bayern Munich.
- A guess at Bayern Munich’s starting XI.
- A prediction on the match.
Becoming a consistent competitors in the Bundesliga is a tough gig.
Aside of Bayern Munich, every other team is trying to ward off getting raided every summer. No team has experienced a year-over-year drop off like VfB Stuttgart when it comes to talent and depth.
Amazingly, Sebastian Hoeneß has Die Schwaben battling, but there is a clear stepdown from last season. During this campaign Jamie Leweling has emerged a breakthrough candidate and other teams are noticing.
What that means is that VfB Stuttgart could be poised to make a nice chunk of change, but will likely also lose more talent:
VfB Stuttgart’s Jamie #Leweling also has a release clause next summer✔️
His contract runs until 2028, but the 23y/o can leave the club for between €20-25m next summer.
There is already significant interest following his strong debut with the German national team, with… pic.twitter.com/hBYYN8Lfcd
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) October 21, 2024
VfB Stuttgart’s Jamie #Leweling also has a release clause next summer✔️
His contract runs until 2028, but the 23y/o can leave the club for between €20-25m next summer.
There is already significant interest following his strong debut with the German national team, with top clubs from England among those interested in the versatile striker.
Oh…and about that release clause:
⚪️ VfB Stuttgart boss Fabian Wohlgemuth on Jamie #Leweling’s release clause, via Sky:
“When it comes to a clause, it’s about the content of a contract. We do not comment on that publicly. But in principle, we were able to secure quality that we normally wouldn’t have been… pic.twitter.com/WppEA2EG5W
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) October 22, 2024
There is no shock that after his hat-trick against Bayern Munich that FC Barcelona star Raphinha is getting some interest:
Manchester City and Newcastle United are both keen to sign Barcelona forward Raphinha, who is valued at €100m (£83.1m). Should Xavi take over as Man Utd manager, he would push to bring the Brazilian to Old Trafford.
Bayern Munich travelled to Spain to take on FC Barcelona…but this was not your older brother’s Barca.
Hansi Flick had his team aggressive, creative, and relentless (shades of his tenure at Bayern Munich) and maybe most importantly, Flick had his squad prepared to take advantage of Bayern Munich’s iffy backline — and that is exactly what the Catalans did to snare a 4-1 victory.
Needless to say, there is a TON to talk about, so let’s do it. Here is what we have on tap for the Bavarian Podcast Works — Postgame Show:
- A look at the starting XI.
- A rundown of the scoring and substitutions.
- Neither coach backed down from their aggressive tactics.
- Why Bayern Munich’s lack of awareness and discipline on the backline is (and has been a problem).
- Missing on Hansi Flick this summer is a decision that will continue to be rued.
- Yup, we are Frustrated, Inc.
- Where does Bayern Munich go from here?
Thibaut Courtois does not mind a little competition with Andriy Lunin at Real Madrid:
⚪️ Thibaut Courtois: “Real Madrid have a wonderful goalkeeper in Lunin”.
“I try to help him, to make him better”.
“This competition is good for both of us. I know it’s not easy after playing a lot last season but he’s great, he will help us”. pic.twitter.com/NjIkgibxrB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 21, 2024
Real Madrid has two players identified for a potential acquisition at right-back:
Real Madrid have “two options” in mind at right-back, Diario AS reports, with Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold and Bayer Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong the club’s preferred targets, although neither is likely to arrive in January.
Alexander-Arnold’s contract at Anfield is due to expire in 2025, while Frimpong, 23, has a long-term deal with the Bundesliga champions until 2028.
According to AS, the pair are Madrid’s two top priorities in the position for next season, while this campaign they’re likely to rely on Lucas Vazquez and occasional appearances from Ferland Mendy or Eder Militao, given Dani Carvajal’s long-term injury.
Few things are inevitable in football, but Bayern Munich vs FC Barcelona has certainly felt that way in recent years. The two FCBs have an incredibly lopsided record in the UEFA Champions League, with Bayern not just winning games, but winning them by some margin, year after year, ad nauseam.
The links between these two clubs are numerous — Barca employ former Bayern Munich men in both Robert Lewandowski and Hansi Flick. Flick especially was considered for the coaching position at Bayern before Vincent Kompany was hired. That makes this game more emotionally charged than usual.
In this episode, INNN and Michael discuss the following:
- Who should be on the starting lineup? Should Thomas Müller play? Does Serge Gnabry keep starting?
- Who are the most dangerous players on the Barca side? Lamine Yamal vs Jamal Musiala, and the curious case of Raphinha.
- How Barca’s attack stacks up against the Bayern Munich defense.
- Why Bayern has an advantage attacking the Barca defense.
- Discussing the two strikers — Harry Kane vs Robert Lewandowski. Who is better?
- What if Vincent Kompany loses? Where do we go next?