Daily Schmankerl: Dortmund and M’Gladbach battling on Thorgan Hazard; An appreciation of Gina Lewandowski; Federico Chiesa news; and MORE!

Discord between Dortmund and M’Gladbach on Hazard deal (Münchner Merkur)

The impending deal for Thorgan Hazard between Borussia Monchengladbach and Borussia Dortmund might be hitting a bit of a snag. The clubs are reportedly €15m apart on a transfer fee.

Thorgan Hazard should agree with Borussia Dortmund - or not? Supposedly the interests of the clubs are far apart. The Belgian Thorgan Hazard recently announced that his move to Borussia Dortmund is almost fixed. “I have a personal agreement with Borussia Dortmund. I talked to them. It takes time. They are in talks,” the 26-year-old had only recently let shine through.

But is everything now coming differently than expected? The ideas of Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Mönchengladbach as replacements should be far apart. While the black-yellow offer 25 million euro, the Foals demand 40, as reported by SportBild.

Sport director Max Eberl is quoted on Sport1: “You have to offer us a replacement that does justice to its value as an outstanding offensive player in the Bundesliga and a regular in one of the best national teams in the world.”

ICYMI: The latest edition of Bavarian Podcast Works (Bavarian Football Works)

Want to hear a couple of guys detail the crazy events of last week? We’ve got you covered.

Give us a listen, subscribe, rate it on iTunes, etc. and keep your #AskBPW questions coming!

Juve closing in on Chiesa? Pep not Juve bound (GianlucaDiMarzio.com)

Citing an interview that Tuttosport did with sports agent Giovanni Branchini, Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio popped in to provide a few nuggets. First, Di Marzio provided the update on Fiorentina winger Federico Chiesa, who looks like he might be closer to signing with Juventus than he is to inking a deal with Bayern.

A name often linked with Juventus is that of Fiorentina’s young star Federico Chiesa: “Yes, he will leave Fiorentina and Juventus could sign him - Branchini revealed - but they will have to sell some players first. With Chiesa, Juventus could begin a partial make-over.”

Branchini scoffed at any notions that Pep Guardiola would make a move to Juventus this summer.

One of the masterminds behind the Guardiola-Bayern Munich deal at the time, super-agent Giovanni Branchini discussed the future of the Catalan manager in an interview with Tuttosport. Despite the rumors linking him to Juventus, it’s unlikely that Pep Guardiola will be at the Bianconeri’s wheel according to Branchini: “He is the manager that improves his players the most, but there’s no chance that he leaves England”, the agent said.

Branchini than talked about the Bianconeri’s current manager Massimiliano Allegri: “He is the best at reading games and in making substitutions. Juventus are happy with him and have the utmost respect for him. That is why I believe that he could stay at Juventus, even though the meetings between the club and the coach will be very important [for the future]”.

Van Bommel targeted for job? (@cfbayern)

Aside of his report on Ajax coach Erik ten Hag earlier today, SportBild chief Christian Falk relayed some news out of Italy that indicated that former Bayern captain Mark van Bommel might be a candidate to coach at AC Milan. Interestingly, Falk also mentioned that Van Bommel could be a considered a future candidate to coach in Bavaria.

Tuttosport reports: @acmilan is interested in former Bavarian captain Mark van Bommel as coach for the coming season. Van Bommel and his @psveindhoven are at the top of the standings with @AFCAjax in Holland. A man also for the future of @FCBayern

Lewandowski: An appreciation (Bavarian Football Works)

Gina Lewandowski’s terrific career with the FC Bayern Frauen will be coming to an end this summer, but here is a quick appreciation of the player who somehow found her way from the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania (Bayern knows where to find talent!).

Lewandowski began her career playing on the youth fields in Pennsylvania before starring at Lehigh University, where she was named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year (2004, 2005) and Patriot League Rookie of the Year (2003). Lewandowski was the leading scorer in the league in 2004 with eight goals and 16 points overall. Despite her offensive prowess, it would be as a defender where Lewandowski would make her mark in the professional ranks.

After first going to Germany in 2007 for a five-year stint with 1. FFC Frankfurt, Lewandowski moved over to Bayern Munich where she has been a staple on the squad since 2012.

Back in 2014, Lewandowski was blogging for WomensSoccerUnited.com and wrote the following about her career journey:

Being introduced to a completely different environment and out of your comfort zone, you discover more about the world we live in and most importantly to grow and expand your own horizons and capabilities. Growing up we all are somewhat sheltered within our own surroundings at home and it is not until we branch out away from that when we encounter that our own little world is just not the same everywhere else. You often experience things you have never been introduced to and may even find yourself stuck in a lot of uncomfortable and awkward situations. Although language and culture barriers can leave you hung out to dry at times in a loss of words and understanding with those around you, they can also create a whole new level of humor as you tried to express yourself with hands and a tiny bit of the language you tried to learn before you arrived. With these exposures, you gain a respect for other cultures, opinions, attitudes and ways of life. The most rewarding for me, however, is just the opportunity to explore a whole new world.

Soccer has been for me an avenue to reach that whole new world and to enlarge my little world that I once knew to an even larger ever-expanding one. I have also been able to learn and understand more about the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual components that make up the human person. Within this environment I have already and even continue to reach certain limits but then realize that if my mind is put to something anything is possible and I can see all that I may be capable of. Soccer has introduced me to all these aspects and brought me to a deeper knowledge of myself and those around me.

Lewandowski might not be as famous as that other guy (no relation) floating around Säbener Strasse, but her impact and pathway to showing how a kid who grew up in Coopersburg, PA can end up playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world is a nice story of a player who removed herself from her comfort zone and continued to challenge herself at every stage of her career.

Where were you when this went down? (@Bayern_mania)