Daily Schmankerl: Sando Wagner passed on re-joining Bayern Munich?; A €270 million package for Erling Haaland?; FC Barcelona wants Matthijs de Ligt; and MORE!

Wagner passed up Bayern return (Sport Bild)

In what would have an been an odd turns of events, Sandro Wagner could have signed with Bayern Munich for a third time before eventually retiring.

Wagner was in talks to play with Bayern Munich II:

Sandro Wagner (33) ended his career last summer. He last played in China. Since then, he has been heard mainly as a “DAZN” expert. He also aspires to a career as a coach! But it wouldn’t have taken much for the ex-striker to be seen on the pitch in a jersey. More precisely, in the U23 of FC Bayern, which plays in 3. Liga.

“I have talked with Jochen Sauer and Holger Seitz. That would have been an option,” Wagner revealed in the “FC Bayern Podcast.” But even those responsible for his heart’s club could not convince him of a third player commitment in Munich.

“It had felt good for me to stop. And I can only do it completely or not at all — that would only have been such a middle ground,” says the former international (eight caps), explaining why he turned down an engagement.

How crazy would that have been?

Rumors on Haaland ignite after showing at Bayern (Sport Bild)

With a pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe looking unlikely, Real Madrid is reportedly turning its focus to Borussia Dortmund phenom Erling Haaland:

“If the signing of Erling Haaland was not a priority until now, it has now become a matter of major importance!” With this choice of words of the Spanish sports daily “AS”, the BVB fans could almost become full of fear and anxiety. According to the paper, Real Madrid intensifies the efforts around the Dortmund goal scorer after his lightning double pack against Bayern once again. Also, because the transfer of Kylian Mbappé, which has been sought for years, is proving difficult.

Interestingly, the number being bandied about to land Haaland this summer is an astounding €270 million in total — with €150 million for a transfer fee and €120 million of salary spread over six years:

A total volume of 270 million euros is in the room. This is made up of 150 million euros transfer fee, plus 120 million euros salary over six years. That would mean an annual salary of 20 million euros for the young Norwegian.

And Real currently even see themselves in the role of favorites in the courtship of Haaland. One reason cited by the “AS” is the friendly relationship between BVB boss Hans-Joachim Watzke and Real president Florentino Perez. Watzke would treat Real with priority in negotiations about Haaland and also possibly allow Real to make an installment payment in order to secure the mega-transfer.

I think he’s worth every penny, but still think that might be too much for a club to pay during a pandemic.

De Ligt to Barca? (Transfer Market Web)

At one point before he moved to Juventus, Matthijs de Ligt was rumored to be on the radar of Bayern Munich. Now, however, it appears that De Ligt has FC Barcelona wanting to bring him in. De Ligt’s countryman and good friend Frenkie de Jong is one of Barca’s brightest stars:

According to Diario Gol, Barcelona FC management are adamant over bringing Dutch international centre-back Matthijs de Ligt (21). Both former NT boss of his, Ronald Koeman, and Frenkie de Jong, one of his best friends, are pledging Juventus powerhouse to part ways with Bianconeri, and join them once current season’s over. Purchased from Ajax on an 85.5 million euros transfer fee in summer 2019, De Ligt is currently on a deal with Serie A defending champions until June 2024.

Already linked to Bayern Munich’s David Alaba, it appears that Barca is looking to revamp its backline.

Waldschmidt living in regret of move? (Sport Bild)

Luca Waldschmidt is one of Germany’s brightest forwards, but has not been able to make a big impact with Benfica:

Luca Waldschmidt (24) spoke in “Kicker” about his move to Benfica Lisbon. He made it clear that he did not regret his decision. Even if things are “not going quite smoothly right now”, it was the right step.

The national player explains: “I wanted to consciously leave my comfort zone.” That does not mean that it was comfortable in Freiburg, “but I had worked out my role, was not that far away from the family.”

Waldschmidt remains optimistic, however: “In my career it has never been completely smooth and steep,” emphasized the attacker: “It’s not all pink right now, but I want and will bite my way through at Benfica.”

Waldschmidt has nine goals and four assists in 32 games across all competitions this season for Benfica. Many of the transfers who left the Bundesliga last summer are not exactly asserting themselves well abroad.

Swoosh-gate for Haaland? (@Footy_Headlines)

There are just so many stories on Haaland these days, including the fact that he has to black out the Nike Swoosh on his headbands for some reason:

Here is attempt at a breakdown on the rationale for taking a Sharpie to the Swoosh, but no one really knows why Haaland crossed it out:

While we first thought that DFL rules do not allow players to wear a hairband with a branding (Swoosh), a look in the league’s official regulations reveals that “a single type of manufacturer identification is allowed” on Headgear [defined in § 35 (2) c].

It remains a mystery why Haaland blacked-out the Swoosh, but we could well expect that the referee forced him (and was not aware of the league’s rules).

Watch out for Erling Haaland and his hairband in the coming matches and the UEFA Champions League.

Falk-Fab bromance continues (@cfbayern)

What’s better than a Falk Flexxx on a Bayern Munich transfer rumor? When Christian Falk and Fabrizio Romano tag-team one of them:

So, yeah, Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly won’t be headed to Bayern Munich.