Daily Schmankerl: Bayern Munich battling for Anderlecht midfielder?; Alphonso Davies is whose dream signing?; Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig have heat?; Dayot Upamecano not yet for sale; and MORE!

Bayern interested in Belgian midfielder? (Sempre Milan)

With the news that Bayern Munich likely won’t exercise the purchase option for Benfica-loanee Tiago Dantas, it appears that the Bavarians will be scouring the transfer market for midfielders to bring in net summer.

Per Calciomercato (as captured by Sempre Milan), Bayern Munich is among the teams scoping Anderlecht midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga. They say:

Confirmations have arrived from Belgium that AC Milan are interested in Anderlecht midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga:

Calciomercato.com reported earlier today that the Rossoneri could look to Anderlecht once again for their next midfield reinforcement one year after the surprise signing of Alexis Saelemaekers. They claim that directors Paolo Maldini and Ricky Massara are following Albert Sambi Lokonga, a 21-year-old central midfielder who is under contract until 2023 and has been compared to Sergio Busquets, with Alexis Saelemaekers having personally recommended him to Stefano Pioli.

According to DH, Lokonga could leave the Brussels-based club but he will not do so in the current transfer window. The report confirms that he is popular with Milan, and it remains to be seen if the Rossoneri will be able to finance the move at the end of the season. The Calciomercato report mentioned that RB Leipzig, Bayern Munich and Sevilla are also interested in the Belgian talent.

After a weekend where Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Florian Neuhaus put on a masterclass against Bayern Munich, I think it might be more probable that the Bavarians will look within the Bundesliga for another midfielder.

Heat between BVB and Leipzig? (Sport Bild)

It sounds like Borussia Dortmund might have been a little motivated by some “bulletin board material” as RB Leipzig manager Julian Nagelsmann unintentionally boosted the opposition’s vigor prior to last weekend:

“I’m already planning to win,” the RB coach had teased before BVB’s 3-1 win against Saxony. BILD learned: The provocative words were also an issue in the Dortmund locker room, and they probably gave the extra kick.

BVB boss Hans-Joachim Watzke (61) was not angry with the Leipzig coach, said to BILD: “It is well known that I appreciate Julian Nagelsmann and his work very much. He said he didn’t mean it at all.”

Nagelsmann had already apologized to Sky before the game: “That was my mistake to say that. That wasn’t right, I was annoyed about that in retrospect. “

BVB shows Leipzig who is number 2 in Germany. Watzke: “After the reports of the last few days you almost got the impression that Leipzig has long overtaken us. This victory was an important sign that we are still there.”

Sport Bild, however, indicated that there could be some “heat” between the two clubs as Leipzig might not be happy that Erling Haaland left RB Salzburg for Dortmund rather than Leipzig:

Spicy: in the transfer race for the Norwegian (25 goals in 25 Bundesliga games), BVB outperformed Leipzig and grabbed the superstar from Leipzig’s sister club Salzburg at a bargain price of 20 million euros. Haaland’s market value is currently 100 million euros.

Leipzig not selling Upamecano just yet (@FabrizioRomano)

With rumors swirling around RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano, transfer czar Fabrizio Romano chimed in with a few key details:

• RB Leipzig will not sell Upamecano during this window.
• Upamecano’s release clause is €42 million.
• There is a lot of interest in Upamecano.

Below is Romano’s full tweet:

Bayern Munich, of course, is one of those clubs at least kicking the tires on the 22-year-old.

Klinsmann says Haaland should stay put (Sport Bild)

There always seems to be a lot of news surrounding Haaland and Jurgen Klinsmann got involved in the mix. The player-turned-manager-turned-pundit thinks Haaland should stick with Borussia Dortmund:

“Haaland has made his mark on this game. He not only scored two beautiful goals, but actually fought alone against the entire defensive line of Leipzig. That was very, very impressive,” said Klinsmann in his role as an expert for the US broadcaster ESPN after the top game in the Bundesliga on Saturday. “It seems like he’s growing month by month and becoming a man and stronger.”

Klinsmann sees no need for Haaland to move to an even bigger club than BVB in the near future. “I think there is no rush for him to look around for a change,” said Klinsmann and advises the youngster: “I would take my time in his shoes.”

Bamford’s dream signing is...Davies? (Caught Offside)

If Leeds United striker Patrick Bamford could pick one player to be a “dream signing” for his club, it would be Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies:

Speaking to the club’s official podcast (as quoted by MOT Leeds News), the 27-year-old forward was asked who his ideal signing would be if money were no object.

“Money’s no object,” Bamford said. “Right, so let’s think about it position-wise. Number nine we’re pretty much sorted. Do you know what, I’d sign, especially with the way we play, the left-back from Bayern Munich, Alphonso Davies. The way we attack, literally our full-backs sometimes play as wingers, we are very attacking and he was just, he came into my head quite quickly then. He’d be a perfect fit. Leeds fans don’t get excited, I don’t think it’s going to happen.”

I think he’s fine where he’s at in Bavaria, Bamford!

Good tweet (@BallStreet)