Daily Schmankerl: Mauricio Pochettino can’t see Tottenham Hotspur star Harry Kane moving to Bayern Munich; Manchester United plotting separation from Cristiano Ronaldo; Real Madrid wants Benjamin Sesko; FC Barcelona to get Pau Torres?; and MORE!

Pochettino can’t see Kane with Bayern (SZ via @iMiaSanMia)

Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino was a little surprised when he first saw the rumors linking Harry Kane to Bayern Munich. As the noise continued to get louder and more and more stories started to arise detailing the possibility, Pochettino became even more confused.

Why? Because Pochettino can really only see Kane leaving England for Real Madrid.

“Harry Kane to Bayern? That would only happen if Harry changed his way of thinking, which I don’t believe he will. He’s very attached to England and his country. He wants to be the Premier League’s all-time top scorer. That’s his goal,” Pochettino told SZ (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “I always saw him as a player who would go to a club like Real Madrid if he ever left England.”

Torres to replace Pique (Mundo Deportivo via 90Min.com)

FC Barcelona could be looking at former Bayern Munich transfer target Pau Torres to be a post-Gerard Pique solution:

Barcelona’s search for a Gerard Pique replacement could see them re-sign 22-year-old Jorge Cuenca from Villarreal. However, he could stay with the club amid intense Premier League interest in centre-back partner Pau Torres, while Juan Foyth is also of interest to Barça. (Mundo Deportivo)

No loan targeted for Aaronson (@FabrizioRomano)

Some (including me!) had speculated that Paxten Aaronson would be headed out on a loan after signing with Eintracht Frankfurt, but it appears that Die Adler are going to keep the New Jersey native in tow:

Bavarian Podcast Works: Weekend Warm-up Podcast Season 2, Episode 20

Bayern Munich is on break, but its 17 players (16 now with Sadio Mané officially on the shelf) who were called to their international teams for the World Cup certainly are not. There will be a ton of activity for the Bayern boys as the tournament in Qatar is set to kickoff.

What does that mean? There is still plenty to talk about with both the German national team and with Bayern Munich. Predictions, transfer talk, a deep dive into the decision-making of a phenom, and more!

Let’s get right to it and see what we have on tap for this episode:

• A look at Germany’s unconvincing performance against Oman why it isn’t time to panic yet, and how this can all round into form pretty quickly.
• A run through each World Cup group with predictions on who will survive and advance.
• Is Paul Wanner Bayern Munich’s Anakin Skywalker?
• Why the end is near for Benjamin Pavard at Bayern Munich.
• A quick look back at what to think about Bayern Munich’s first half of the season.
• We’ve got all of that and even a little more as I — finally — found something (somewhat) good to say about the final season of The Walking Dead. And yes, I realize that I am probably the only knucklehead still watching it!

Madrid, United eyeing Sesko (Fichajes)

Red Bull Salzburg striker Benjamin Sesko is moving to RB Leipzig next summer, but Real Madrid and Manchester United are reportedly already interested in grabbing the Slovenian:

Despite the fact that Vinicius continues on the path marked out last year and Rodrygo and Fede Valverde have improved their goalscoring records, the need to add a new striker is evident. And everything indicates that the different options offered by the market to strengthen themselves are being evaluated from the club’s offices.

In this circumstance, one of the names that has returned to the scene and that Central Defense echoes is Benjamin Sesko. The 19-year-old Slovenian striker will trade Salzburg for Leipzig next summer in exchange for €24M after a start to the season in which he racked up 7 goals and 3 assists in 25 games.

Already nicknamed the “new Haaland”, the striker is also showing his qualities in his team, with whom he has scored 5 times in 16 games. Thus, the aforementioned source states that Real Madrid will closely follow Sesko’s developments during the coming season in Germany in order to assess whether he is an interesting player to join their project in the future.

In addition, 90Min.com captured a report from Dean Jones stating that Manchester United is also keeping a very close eye on Sesko:

As they hunt for a new striker in the January transfer window, Man Utd scouts have been keeping a close eye on Red Bull Salzburg’s Benjamin Sesko. The Slovenian teenager has already agreed to join RB Leipzig next summer

United to axe Ronaldo’s contract? (@FabrizioRomano)

It seems like Manchester United might start the process of seeking to work out a buyout or separation agreement with disgruntled star Cristiano Ronaldo:

Kloppo ready to spend (90Min.com)

Liverpool FC boss Jurgen Klopp might be preparing to splurge if Fenway Sports Group sells the club:

Jurgen Klopp has revealed he is happy to receive ‘fresh money’ in order to bolster his playing squad amid talk of FSG selling Liverpool.