Are you in…or out on Füllkrug? (@Plettigoal)
Perhaps the most polarizing topic among Bayern Munich fans these days is whether or not the club should just exit the race for a more expensive striker and bring in Werder Bremen striker Niclas Füllkrug.
Füllkrug would represent stagnation as some folks do not think the Germany international will be that much of an upgrade over Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting. To others, however, the 30-year-old could be a cost-effective, bridge solution until Bayern Munich finds a striker that it has truly fallen in love with.
One thing that both sides can agree on is that Füllkrug will be affordable. Sky Sport journalist Florian Plettenberg is reporting that the striker will be available for €15 to €20 million. Plettenberg also pointed out that some important people at the club are fans of the former Hannover 96 attacker:
Right now, there are no perfect solutions. In fact, you could argue only three of those exist for Bayern Munich (FC Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski, Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, and Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane).
It is clear that there are factors with Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, Eintracht Frankfurt’s Randal Kolo Muani, Juventus’ Dušan Vlahović, Atalanta’s Rasmus Højlund, and Benfica’s Gonçalo Ramos that are preventing the Bavarians from going all-in on any of them at this point.
With Choupo-Moting’s balky back and aching knee and Mathys Tel’s limited vision and lack of experience, bringing in Füllkrug might not be the worst idea. He’s cheap…he’s German (so no acclimation period)…and he can score. With the talent he would be surrounded with at Bayern Munich, he could thrive.
You could probably do a lot worse than what Füllkrug is capable of providing. He might not be perfect, but he might also be the safest solution for this transfer window.
Normally, I’d take the old Bill O’Reilly approach, “We’ll do it live! F…”, but if the Bavarians cannot find peace with any of the bigger name striker, I’d be okay with Füllkrug an option for next season.
If you are asking what I personally would do (you are, right?), I’m going in for Vlahović and banking on a new environment bringing out the best in him.
Again, it’s not ideal, but this is where things stand.
City turns up heat on Gvardiol (@RudyGaletti)
Manchester City might not be patient enough to wait until next summer to ger RB Leipzig’s Joško Gvardiol. In fact, the Citizens might be pushing to get a deal done now:
It was just a week ago that Bayern Munich was briefly linked to the Croatian star. Now, though, his high cost priced out the Bavarians — and placed him right into the hands of Manchester City.
Bavarian Podcast Works — Flagship Show: Season 5, Episode 50 (Bavarian Football Works)
With all the Bayern Munich action confined to the transfer window for now, it’s time to shift gears and talk a little bit more about Germany and their recent failures on the pitch. Hansi Flick is currently reeling from a couple of dismal results vs Ukraine and Poland which has everyone reconsidering the idea of having him coach at the Euros.
On the Bayern end of things, Napoli’s Kim Min-jae is set to become the club’s latest defender signing while Kai Havertz slips out of the bosses hands and into the arms of Chelsea. Lots to talk about right now.
Meanwhile, Bavarian Podcast Works has been nominated for the 2023 edition of the World Soccer Talk — Best Club Podcast Award. Click on that link and go vote for us!
In this episode, INNN and Chuck talk about the following:
- Is Hansi Flick on the chopping block at the German national team?
- Should he be? Is it just a question of talent? Or could the coach do better?
- INNN chimes in with some Thomas Muller propaganda (because why not?).
- Julian Nagelsmann as Germany coach — WHAT IF?
- Is Hansi Flick mishandling Niklas Sule?
- Would you be surprised if Hansi Flick were sacked at this stage?
- Shifting gears to the transfer talk — is Kim Min-jae a good transfer for Bayern Munich?
- Kyle Walker to Bayern — is that a good idea?
- Why Thomas Tuchel maybe shouldn’t be given too many options on the transfer market.
- Why is Bayern Munich so hesitant to secure a striker?
- How Choupo-Moting could end up being a starter next season.
Bayern extends Janitzek, sends him on loan (FCBayern.com)
Bayern Munich has extended young center-back Justin Janitzek and loaned him out right away:
FC Bayern has prematurely extended the player contract with amateur central defender Justin Janitzek by one year until June 2025 and at the same time loaned the 19-year-old to the Swiss first division club FC St. Gallen 1879. Janitzek should take the next step in last year’s table sixth in the Swiss Super League.
This is a good move for all involved. It will be interesting to see how Janitzek fares in Switzerland.
In addition, Bayern Munich made some moves with its youth goalkeepers:
From Down Under to the Bayern Campus! FC Bayern have signed the Australian youth keeper Anthony Pavlešić. The 17-year-old junior national keeper with Croatian roots, who is currently playing at the U17 Asian Championship, comes to the NLZ of the German record champions from the Central Coast Mariners Academy. There he is scheduled for the upcoming season for the junior squad.
Goalkeeping coordinator Tom Starke: “Anthony completed a two-week trial with us in February and left a lasting impression. We then continued to follow him very closely and decided that the overall package was the right one. He’s a very positive guy, who already appears very mature for his age and has all the physical requirements.”
In addition, goalkeeper talent Max Schmitt has extended his contract.
Cancelo’s situation is still the same (@FabrizioRomano)
There are some Bayern Munich fans dreaming of a return for João Cancelo…and it could still be alive. Pep Guardiola says that FC Barcelona has not submitted a bid for the Portuguese international:
Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Podcast: Season 2, Episode 49 (Bavarian Football Works)
The summer transfer window has not even opened yet, but things are wild at Bayern Munich. There is plenty to discuss, so let’s get right to it. This is what we have on tap for this episode:
- RIP to Bayern Munich’s hopes for Declan Rice and maybe Dušan Vlahović.
- Is Joshua Kimmich driving his teammates crazy with his on-field antics and backroom politics?
- Bayern Munich is losing Lucas Hernandez and Benjamin Pavard. Dayot Upamecano and Noussair Mazraoui are rumored to be unhappy. Even Alphonso Davies’ contract extension went from “sure thing” to “uh-oh.” What can the Bavarians do…let’s look at the options — and there are plenty of good ones at center-back (maybe even some who can unseat Upamecano or De Ligt).
Gündoğan won’t go back to BVB (@cfbayern)
It would have been fun, but Manchester City midfielder İlkay Gündoğan won’t be making a return to Borussia Dortmund:
Kovačić-to-City inching closer to done (@FabrizioRomano)
Another day, another update on Chelsea FC midfielder Mateo Kovačić’s rumored move to Manchester City:
