Thomas Tuchel has made it clear that, in addition to a top-class striker, he wants to try to sign a number 6 midfielder for Bayern Munich this summer, even though Joshua Kimmich already deputizes in that role. In theory, a solid defensive midfield signing would give Kimmich a lot more freedom in an attacking, box-to-box sense, but it would further pack the midfield depth chart since there’s already Kimmich, Leon Goretzka, Jamal Musiala, Konrad Laimer coming in this summer from RB Leipzig, and Ryan Gravenberch unless he moves elsewhere else in the next window.
Bayern was one of a laundry list of clubs across Europe that expressed at least some interest in AFC Ajax’s Edson Alvarez. The Mexican international is a defensive midfielder that fits the profile of the type of midfielder Tuchel is looking for. His current contract with Ajax runs through June 2025 and he’s valued at around €35.00m, via transfermarkt. BILD had reported earlier this month, though, that the player would probably cost more close to €40m if Ajax were convinced to sell him during the summer transfer window, knowing that there’s a handful of clubs interested in acquiring his services including Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea, and Newcastle United.
Per new information from both Tobi Altschaffl and Christian Falk of SportBild (via @iMiaSanMia), Dortmund are ahead of Bayern in the race to sign Alvarez. They also report that Dortmund has already made contact with Ajax and asked about a potential sale of the midfielder this summer, which is something Bayern has not yet done.
Dortmund midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud’s contract is set to expire this summer and Emre Can’s is set to expire next summer, so they’re proactively trying to plan for the future of their midfield, explaining their interest in Alvarez. While it could perceivably be a blow to lose out to Dortmund in the race for the Mexican international, there are still other options for Bayern to consider and a top-class striker remains the top priority for this summer.