Daily Schmankerl: Manchester City’s Leroy Sane could be targeting a return this season (!?); Why Bayern Munich walked away from Juventus forward Mario Mandzukic; A prediction for Bayern vs. Schalke; and MORE!

Sane could be targeting a return this season (Daily Mail)

Manchester City star Leroy Sane was allegedly on the verge of a blockbuster deal with Bayern Munich when Pep Guardiola rolled him out for the Community Shield match against Liverpool where the 23-year-old sustained an ACL injury.

Now, it looks like the Germany international is going to attempt to play again this season:

Leroy Sane could play again this season after reportedly undergoing successful surgery on his ACL injury. The Manchester City winger traveled to Austria for surgery completed by Professor Christian Fink, on the recommendation of teammates from the German national team. The winger could now feature again in the latter half of this season, with February a slim possibility, but Sane himself is refusing to set a timeframe for his return.

Depending on the extent of Sane’s injury (details have been vague), a return within six months would certainly be considered aggressive, if not premature. With so much riding on his future, hopefully Sane is smart with his rehabilitation — whether he moves to Bayern Munich or not this winter.

Why Bayern walked away from Mandzukic (Calciomercato)

The talks between Bayern Munich and Juventus for Mario Mandzukic were scorching hot at one point, but the sides could not come to an agreement for a few reasons according to Calciomercato. Mandzukic’s age and the financial demands of The Old Lady were the primary reasons a deal did not get done:

The negotiations that could have led Mario Manduzkic to Bayern Munich have broken down. Instead, the Croatian striker will have to find himself another club. As Tuttosport writes, the Bayern Munich management put the brakes on the negotiations due to the player’s age and because of Juventus’ demands for the striker.

Bayern vs. Schalke: A prediction (Bavarian Football Works)

Bayern Munich’s match-up with Schalke 04 comes at an interesting time given the seemingly daily roster moves being made in Bavaria. Ivan Perisic, Philippe Coutinho, and Michaël Cuisance came in and Renato Sanches went away. The squad shake-up should keep the players on their toes as competition for playing time is likely to become fierce.

Still, Bayern — as always — has enough ailments to offset the glut of newbies showing up. Leon Goretzka is battling a hamstring injury, while Fiete Arp and Jerome Boateng are both sick. Coutinho and Lucas Hernandez are still both working themselves into full fitness, while Cortetin Tolisso (healthy) is also trying to re-gain his old form after missing the majority of last season with an ACL injury.

Clearly, Niko Kovac’s choice XI will be in flux for weeks, if not months, until he settles into something consistent. One byproduct of all of this is that the newfound depth on the roster should force each player to draw his best performance this week after a disappointment in the opener against Hertha Berlin. I think Bayern will be a force offensively and apply massive amounts of pressure to a shaky Schalke back-line.

For Die Königsblauen, the struggle to score might be a consistent theme for the season, like it was in Match Day 1. Of note, Mark Uth is still plying his trade, but has not shown the dynamic style needed to carry a team’s offense. On the bright side, Schalke does have Weston McKennie and Ozan Kabak, although the one-time Bayern Munich transfer target from VfB Stuttgart is currently injured.

No matter who suits up for Schalke, this should be an easy Bayern win.

Prediction: Bayern Munich 4, Schalke 1

Los Blancos eyeing former Bayern goalkeeper (tz)

Real Madrid is reportedly thinking about bringing in former Bayern Munich goalkeeper Pepe Reina:

Because Keylor Navas, who is currently still under contract with Real Madrid, wants to try his luck in France. The 32-year-old probably wants to play for coach Thomas Tuchel. Apparently, Real Madrid have already several successors in sight. In addition to ex-Bundesliga professional Diego Benaglio also the former Bayern keeper Pepe Reina is on the list of potential Navas successors.

Falk flex-ing himself out (@cfbayern)

Christian Falk was a lot cooler when he was using his flex powers to fight with other journalists. Now, it just feels like he’s using his flex ability for all the wrong reasons:

He just might have out-flexed himself on this one, though, give the report earlier that Bayern “will not buy” Espanyol’s Marc Roca.

Atleti moving in on Soares? (Transfer Market Web)

Gremio’s Everton Soares was on Bayern Munich’s radar at one point during this transfer window, but nothing came out of the rumors. Now, Atlético Madrid is taking a look at the 23-year-old:

Pursued by a bunch of top and wealthy European clubs, Brazilian international winger Everton Soares (23), according to Radio Marca, is more and more of a main target for Atletico Madrid. To this end, Gremio set a 60 million euros cash demand on their main star.