Daily Schmankerl: Manchester City to replace Leroy Sane with Joao Felix?; Dortmund ponders Mario Mandzukic; PSV Eindhoven wants Arjen Robben; PSG fears losing both Kylian Mbappe and Neymar; and MORE!

City to sell Sane in order to clear the way for Felix? (The Sun)

Benfica 19-year-old Joao Felix had a tremendous campaign in 2018/2019 and has opened the eyes of many big clubs across Europe, including Manchester City. With Bayern Munich allegedly trying to nail down a deal for Leroy Sane, Pep Guardiola might be thinking about letting the 23-year-old Germany international walk in favor of Felix.

Manchester City could sell contract rebel Leroy Sane and make a move for Portuguese whiz kid Joao Felix. City might choose to flog Sane, who interests Bayern, to help stay within UEFA’s Financial Fair Play limits. If City do sell Sane, they could join the chase for Benfica starlet Felix, 19.

Mandzukic being considered by BVB? (Bild)

After procuring Hoffenheim’s Nico Schulz, Borussia Monchengladbach’s Thorgan Hazard, and Bayer Leverkusen’s Julian Brandt, Borussia Dortmund might have another exciting name on its list: Juventus man and Croatia international Mario Mandzukic.

As Bild has learned, Mario Mandzukic (33) is again a topic at (Dortmund)! The attacker of Juventus Turin (contract until 2021) should not rule out a change. According to Bild information, the BVB advisors put the Croatian national player up for discussion with the bosses in a round. Head Hans-Joachim Watzke (59) and manager Michael Zorc (56) should find the personnel interesting. Coach Lucien Favre (61), on the other hand, wants to rely more on “ball playing” strikers such as Mario Götze (26) and Paco Alcácer (25).

It appears that the Mandzukic is more valued by the BVB front office than the coach at this stage.

Of course, the denials are already flying:

(Updated 8:07AM EST)

Could Robben be heading to PSV Eindhoven? (Transfer Market Web)

While Leicester City was linked to Arjen Robben earlier this week, PSV Eindhoven is also in hot pursuit of the 35-year-old winger.

Leaving Bayern Munich, after ten very successful seasons, Dutch star winger Arjen Robben (35), starting with a clean slate elsewhere, has been targeted by PSV Eindhoven on a move back (to the Netherlands), according to latest rumors. Recently inquired by USA, China and Japan clubs, the former Real Madrid and Chelsea man clarified he’d rather keep playing in European football.

Robben, himself, acknowledged the Leicester City rumors in talking to the BBC when he said this (as captured by Transfer Market Web):

I really don’t know what lies ahead of my future. It’s no easy decision to be made. Leicester City? Sure, that’s an option for me.

Interesting...

LFC spins Werner story to a positive at Anfield (Anfield HQ)

Yesterday we featured a story on RB Leipzig’s Ralf Rangnick saying this about Bayern’s alleged pursuit of Timo Werner:

I would not be so sure that Werner will actually go to Bayern. If Bayern were absolutely sure about Timo, they would have already officially contacted us with a request. Anything else would be unusual for Bayern, especially since we have a good relationship with them.

That statement has apparently left the door open for Liverpool to feel like it can grab Werner this summer:

Leipzig are eager to sell Werner this summer to ensure they don’t lose him for nothing next year once his contract expires. The Reds have been linked with a move for Werner for months, with speculation ramping up in recent weeks.

Der Titan shows no mercy (Sport Bible)

Oliver Kahn doesn’t care how old you are, he will not let anyone have it easy.

The aptly named Titan might have called it time on his professional football career, but that didn’t mean he was going to ease up against any type of opposition in a one-off match, including nine-year-olds in a charity penalty shootout. Tor!, a book that focuses on the history of German football, claims that Kahn took part in a penalty shootout against a bunch of nine-year-olds for charity.

According to the story, every time that the youngsters scored against the Bayern Munich legend, money would be donated to charity. Unfortunately for the nine-year-olds, the 49-year-old German shot-stopper had no intention of allowing himself to be beaten and ended up saving every single shot fired his way in the shootout. Wow... Even when it comes to charity, the man lived up to his reputation as Der Titan.

Liverpool keen on James (The Mirror)

The speculation on the future of James Rodriguez will not die down and some eager Premier League clubs are brainstorming how they can land the Colombia international. Among those interested, once again, is Liverpool.

Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal are all interested in bringing the 27-year-old to England, but they face competition. Recently-crowned Italian champions Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, the French giants, are also keeping tabs on his situation.

Real are keen to move Rodriguez on to increase their transfer kitty ahead of a summer overhaul. Chelsea’s Eden Hazard remains at the top of their wishlist while Zidane has confirmed his interest in United midfielder Paul Pogba.

With Real Madrid desperate to bring in both Hazard and Pogba, a flip of James to the highest bidder only seems natural — should Bayern renounce its right to purchase the 27-year-old.

Kruse a popular figure in the transfer market (Transfer Market Web)

Outgoing Werder Bremen forward Max Kruse had been linked to Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and Bayer Leverkusen, but there are many other teams scoping the 31-year-old including Inter Milan, AS Roma, Tottenham Hotspur, and Schalke 04. It might be Eintracht Frankfurt, however, that could land the veteran.

Leaving Werder Bremen as a free agent, after a couple thorough seasonal performances, German striker Max Kruse (31), recently inquired about by Bayern Munich, is getting closer and closer to joining Eintracht Frankfurt, choosing him as a fit replacement for Luka Jovic, according to Transfermarkt.de. Former Wolfsburg and ‘Gladbach hitman is also tracked by Inter Milan, AS Roma, Tottenham, and Schalke 04.

PSG fearing it could lose Mbappe and Neymar? (Sport Bild)

While its domestic hopes might not suffer a ton, any chance at Champions League glory would surely become extinct if Paris Saint-Germain lost both Neymar and Kylian Mbappe in the same offseason, right?

Mbappe issued some iffy public statements, while Neymar is seemingly always a flight risk:

Most recently, Mbappé himself had fueled the rumor mill. After his election as the best player of the season in Ligue 1 on Sunday evening, the French world champion had said he was at a “turning point” in his career. (He) could continue “perhaps at PSG, perhaps somewhere else.” “If it’s PSG, all the better if it’s somewhere else, it would be a new challenge,” Mbappé continued later, according to French media reports.

Tuchel acknowledged that Mbappe’s statements probably do not help the always festering transfer rumor mill in Paris, but is not mad at his young star:

Kylian has a lot of self-confidence, scores important goals, always wants to score and guys like him are special. Kylian knows what he’s doing, he’s very smart.

In the end, Tuchel knows PSG will have to find a way to deal with the fact that both players want to leave if they make a formal request to the club:

If you ask the trainer, I say, yes, I want (Mbappe and Neymar to stay). But we are careful and not naive. Many clubs want to sign players. I want both to be here next season. But if that is not the case, we will find solutions.

Inter expects to land Chiesa (Transfer Market Web)

Fiorentina star Federico Chiesa has been a popular figure among several power clubs, including Bayern. Inter Milan, however, is feeling pretty good about its chances to land the 21-year-old star, especially after talking to his father, Enrico.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter Milan top brass, ahead of the talks aimed to sign Italian international winger Federico Chiesa (21), got in touch with his father, and former distinguished forward, Enrico Chiesa. Nerazzurri are confident they can defeat such clubs as Juventus, Tottenham, and Bayern Munich in getting the upper hand on the negotiations.

ICYMI: Bavarian Podcast Works is back! (Bavarian Football Works)

The latest version of the podcast is posted. Give a listen and hear our scorching hot takes and analysis! Or, at a minimum, you can catalog the dumb things I say and light me up in the comments.