Daily Schmankerl: Bayern Munich chasing Leeds United star Raphinha?; Tariq Lamptey warned against Bayern move; Julian Draxler wants Bundesliga return; Chelsea’s Kai Havertz progressing; and MORE!

Bayern and LFC chasing Raphinha (Football 365)

Word out of Italy is that Bayern Munich could be positioning itself for a move on Leeds United winger Raphinha. With Douglas Costa heading back to Juventus after this season, the Bavarians could be in the market for an inverted winger:

Bayern Munich are set to challenge Liverpool for the signing of Leeds United star Raphinha, according to reports in Italy. Raphinha had successful spells with Vitoria Guimaraes and Sporting Lisbon prior to his move to Rennes in 2019.

His performances have put clubs on alert ahead of this summer, as it looks like Leeds will have a fight on their hands to keep a hold of their forward. Liverpool have been heavily linked with him over the past few months. He is reportedly seen as an ideal replacement for Mo Salah should he leave the club. Italian outlet CalcioMercato have now revealed that Bayern Munich have also expressed their interest in the 24-year-old.

Despite there being ongoing talk about his future, Raphinha recently told Leeds’ official website that he is happy at the club: “I’m really happy to be here in Leeds being part of this institution, it’s a real pleasure. I’m really enjoying the city, I’ve really been made welcome here.”

The 24-year-old Brazilian has seven goals and seven assists in 30 games across all competitions this season and has a value of €18 million per Transfermarkt.

The results are in (@SoccerInsider)

Bayern Munich’s 4-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on ABC (and ESPN Deportes) last week brought in 653,600 viewers over-the-air (not including streaming numbers) in the United States.

Philadelphia (the only city that matters on this list...I kid, I kid) tied for 5th in most viewers. Albuquerque, New Mexico (which I would have inevitably spelled wrong if it was not listed in the tweet below) was first and Knoxville, Tennessee was second, which both surprised me.

I’ve been to Milwaukee, so I am not shocked a lot of folks saw Der Klassiker as another good reason to crack beers on a Saturday afternoon. Portland, Nashville, and Philly are MLS markets, which also makes sense they would be listed...but New York....where ya at?

Oh...with spring training in full swing, you were probably on You Tube watching the Yankees “Haya Doin’?” song on loop.

You can shred any Bayern Munich-related song you want, but the “Haya Doin?’” song is the WORST of any club-based song.

And why is “Haya Doin’?” and not “How Ya Doin’?”

Okay...I lied...the Scott Stapp-powered Florida Marlins theme “Marlins Will Soar” might be worse.

Marlins are fish, right? Why are they soaring?

Do you have any awful (in a good way or bad way) team themes? List them in the comments.

Surely, they are NOT as cool as the Pine Tree Garden song we received or any of the club-related songs that Bayern Munich plays during halftime of its web radio broadcasts on the app.

Anyway, what song above is worse:

Schweinsteiger hoping for the best as Löw plans exit (@dw_sports)

Bayern Munich and Germany legend Bastian Schweinsteiger wants Joachim Löw to leave Die Mannschaft on a championship-winning note:

Ol’ Basti was not done there, however:

Some Bayern Munich fans might not like that so much.

I am probably a bigger fan of Flick’s work than most — and I think he is a logical choice to eventually take over the German national team at some point — but he still has so much more to win at the club-level.

Flick balances teaching, strategy, player management, and creating a winning environment at an elite level that not many others can match.

Lamptey warned against Bayern move (Caught Offside)

Brighton right-back Tariq Lamptey has been loosely linked to Bayern Munich on multiple occasions, but former Brighton striker Bobby Zamora thinks that would be a grave mistake:

Brighton right-back Tariq Lamptey has been told he should stay where he is despite transfer rumours linking him with the likes of Arsenal and even Bayern Munich. This is the view of former Brighton striker Bobby Zamora, speaking exclusively to Ladbrokes at its launch of the 5-A-Side Bet on Southampton v Brighton.

Zamora, however, has made it clear he thinks Lamptey should prioritise playing regularly at this stage of his career instead of rushing into a move.

“At 20 years of age, Tariq Lamptey just has to be playing as much football as he possibly can, and I think Brighton is a great platform for him for the time being,” he said. “He’s been massively missed this season on that right-hand side, and I know he’s been linked with Arsenal and even Bayern Munich in the last few weeks. But for me, he needs to be playing regularly, and I don’t think that would be the case if he was to join one of those bigger sides right now.”

Draxler “homesick” for Bundesliga (Bild)

Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Julian Draxler might want to head home after an extended stay in France:

Julian Draxler (27) is in the quarter-finals of the Champions League with Paris after the second leg against Barcelona (1:1). After the game, the ex-Schalke, in his fourth year at PSG, spoke about his future. Draxler, whose contract ends this summer: “At the moment there are a lot of conversations going on and we’ll see what happens.”

Regarding a possible Bundesliga return, he says: “I feel a bit homesick, but I haven’t made up my mind yet.”

In the summer, Draxler was associated with Leverkusen from the Bundesliga, while Arsenal FC, among others, is said to be interested in the Prermier League. One thing is clear: Draxler is aiming for a club when he changes, which gives him the chance of another Champions League participation.

So...will my “bad take” become a “correct bad take” or just remain “bad”?

Havertz making progress under Tuchel (Sky)

Chelsea midfielder Kai Havertz is starting to make progress under fellow German Thomas Tuchel:

Germany playmaker Havertz had struggled to realise his rich potential since his £70million summer switch to Stamford Bridge from Bayer Leverkusen. The 21-year-old was unable to find his niche under Frank Lampard, suffering lasting effects from coronavirus and battling for regular first team action.

“I’m very happy with his performance; there’s no doubt about his quality, his talent and also not about his character,” said Tuchel. “He needs to adapt to the Premier League, he needs to a club where you play to win every game, where the highest standards are normal.

“That’s a normal process also for him to adapt to this mentality. He showed up between the lines and used his potential to accelerate our game and to increase the touches in the box – and to be responsible for assists and through-balls, and also to take the responsibility to finish himself. And from here, on we go.”

That is good news for Havertz, who — like Timo Werner — has come under fire by the media and some fans in London.