Daily Schmankerl: James in tax trouble; Bayern thoughts; Pulisic’s price; and MORE!

James Rodriguez in tax trouble (El Mundo)

Joining the elite class of Leo Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Marcelo among others, James Rodriguez has found himself with tax issues in Spain.

The Tax Agency attributes the Bayern Munich player James Rodriguez a tax fraud of 6.35 million euros for the taxation of their image rights during his time at Real Madrid. The Treasury does not notice in the case of the Colombian international the commission of a fiscal offense, but considers that it defrauded an amount that, with sanction and interest, will amount to 11.65 million euros, and is one of the most important fixed to a footballer in the Spanish League.

The €11.65M fine will surely not sit well with James, but it’s better than spending some time time in the pokey, right?

Some takes from inside the stadium (Bavarian Football Works)

The weather was far from ideal and the game was choppy as Juventus crowded its defensive end, but it was still good to Bayern Munich stateside. There isn’t a reason to overreact to game results or even individual performances on this tour given how many key players are missing, but here are some quick thoughts from inside the stadium:

• The atmosphere in and around the stadium was great and full of excited from both Bayern and Juventus fans. Each team had strong fan support. The total attendance, though, was disappointing at 32,105.
• The players appeared to be a bit annoyed with the playing surface as it was extremely wet due to the crazy rain Philadelphia has had all week, especially yesterday.
• Die Roten dominated the ball - and game really - but Sven Ulreich’s howler and some poor defense on a perfectly timed run by Andrea Favilli was enough to undo Bayern. Part of me wonders if Ulreich is just a very good technical goalkeeper that will forever be burdened with a penchant for horrid decision making.
• The younger Bayern players lack the physical strength to match up as of now. There is no doubt Bayern has some talent on its reserve team and with its youth, but they just lack the muscle to compete on a first team at this stage. Certainly players like Woo-Yeong Jeong, Meritan Shabani, Marcel Zylla, and Ryan Johansson have something to offer with skill, but probably need a little more physical maturity to compete.
• Of the “youngster” lot, Paul Will, Jonathan Meier and Chris Richards appeared to be the most confident, composed, and able on the pitch.
• I was not as down on the performance of “Robbery” as most. I thought both had their moments - albeit with no goals - but one of the great things about being in the stadium was to see how there was just a lack of cohesion between the younger and older and players; which definitely played a role in what players like Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben were trying to do. As far as the other wings, I thought Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman had some dynamic moments as well, but just did not finish.
• One of the things I am most critical of Renato Sanches for is that he forces the game at times, which he did a few times last night. Far from the biggest problem on the field, Sanches was adequate patrolling the midfield, but when he enters the offensive end, it’s as if he cannot control himself. Twice when Bayern was working to create offense, Sanches uncorked shots that had no chance from the range and/or angle he took. It is those little parts of the game where he still needs much seasoning.
• Despite being shutout, Bayern had at least one assist as Sandro Wagner lifted his walkout partner over a massive puddle in the tunnel:

Even after all of that it was still a great time to see Bayern play in my hometown. Finding out that HBO is FINALLY doing a Deadwood movie may also help get over the loss!

Dortmund plans on sticking with Christian Pulisic, well, unless you have “far above” €70M to offer (@GERFootDaily)

Sounds like Dortmund may be putting an unofficial price tag on Christian Pulisic via a statement like this. The Premier League is still the leader in the clubhouse as his eventual landing spot, but if Bayern wanted to conquer the U.S. market it would have the capital to throw down for a move (although, it would appear unlikely that it will actually happen). As much as he would fit within what Bayern does, Pulisic just seems more destined to end up with his boyhood favorites (Manchester United) or even Tottenham Hotspur.

Reinhard Grindel finally admits some fault over Mesut Özil-DFB war (@dw_sports)

You can read the whole statement here.