Daily Schmankerl: Fredi Bobic sets expectations with Bayern Munich; Ivan Rakitic back on the table for Bayern (!?); and MORE!

Bobic lets Bayern know it will have to pay for Frankfurt talent (Spox)

Eintracht Frankfurt sporting director Fredi Bobic knows that Bayern Munich has interest in some of his club’s most important players, but noted that procuring any of them would be costly.

It may be that they think this or that player of ours is interesting, but I think that totally different big clubs will come around the corner. If they’re interested in our players, Bayern will really have to bleed. I can see from the scouting list at every home game that clubs are following our players. That’s the creme de la creme; they weren’t there yet two years ago. We’ll go up to our limits to hold the team together as best we can. But of course we have brutal competitors, especially in the economic sphere — and somewhere we have our limits.

Even though that sounds like Bobic is laying down a threat, we’re pretty sure he just means “bleed money.” I mean, I guess Bobic could be challenging Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidžić and the rest of the Bayern brass to some kind of Gangs of New York-type brawl as well, but we’ll go with the term “bleed” as being figurative.

Anyway, Bayern has been reported to have at least mild interest in each of Eintracht Frankfurt’s big three of Luka Jovic, Ante Rebic, and Sebastien Haller. Jovic is considered the crown jewel of that trio, but all three have exceptional qualities that would be of interest to a big club like Bayern.

Bayern back in on Rakitic? (Sport)

Just one day after it looked like Bayern was exiting the race for FC Barcelona’s Ivan Rakitic, the Bavarians could be back in, at least according to Sport:

Ivan Rakitic’s future is going to be the subject of many rumors between now and the end of the season. Barcelona don’t plan to renew his contract yet, given it’s under two years since his last new deal. Rakitic is a player with a good reputation and in the coming months he must decide what his future holds. The Croatian has big offers on the table and Barça must decide if they open the door to a transfer. The latest club to show an interest is Bayern Munich, who are preparing to remodel their squad. They have been informed about the situation and are ready to offer a reasonable package.

The 30-year-old Rakitic has been heavily linked to Inter Milan. He would seem to be an outside-the-box acquisition for Munich, considering that the Bavarians are already stocked with midfielders and are seeking to get younger.

Kovac joins the 100 club (FCBayern.com)

Niko Kovac will coach his 100th game in the Bundesliga tomorrow.

Bayern boss Niko Kovac will be celebrating a milestone on Saturday. The match against his former club Hertha BSC, for whom he made a total of 75 Bundesliga appearances (eight goals) across two spells, will be the 47-year-old’s 100th as a coach in the Bundesliga. fcbayern.com has all the other essential facts and figures on this fixture.

Pizarro honored with Bundesliga video (@Bundesliga_EN)

Werder Bremen’s Claudio Pizarro has had a remarkable career. The Bundesliga compiled some of his most memorable goals in a video of his most spectacular goals. Pizarro of course, came on as a substitute last week and hit a game-tying goal in extra time to force a draw with Hertha Berlin.

With 195 goals, Pizarro is the all-time top-scoring foreign player in the Bundesliga. The Peruvian’s record, however, will likely fall to Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski in the near future. Lewandowski has 193 goals in league play.

Anyway, Pizarro’s first goal for Bayern in the Bundesliga is mixed in the montage:

Looking for some weekly Bundesliga predictions? I’ve got you covered (The Barrel)

If you are looking to kill some time this morning and want a brief preview on each Bundesliga match (along with some predictions that will most likely go up in flames quickly), I’ve got you covered here.

ICYMI: BFW Film Room (Bavarian Football Works)

If you are looking for some in depth visual analysis for Bayern, give our “BFW Film Room” story stream a look.