Daily Schmankerl: Real Madrid, Bayern Munich to battle for Florian Wirtz?; Julian Nagelsmann flashes skills; Max Meyer on the move again; Paul Wanner’s potential should provide hope; and MORE!

Madrid, Bayern considered top contenders for Wirtz (The Hard Tackle)

Bayern Munich and Real Madrid were listed among the top candidates to do battle over Bayer Leverkusen ace Florian Wirtz during the summer transfer window:

Real Madrid will reportedly face stiff competition from Bayern Munich in the race to sign 18-year-old German prodigy Florian Wirtz.

According to a report by Spanish outlet Fichajes, Real Madrid will not be the only high profile club pursuing Florian Wirtz in the summer transfer window. Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich are also closely monitoring the German prodigy’s progress, with Bayer Leverkusen likely to demand around €100 million for him.

There are a couple of things we know about any deal for Wirtz:

1. Bayer Leverkusen will command nine figures (or close to it) for the phenom.
2. Wirtz will not be going anywhere until after the 2022/23 season.

What we also know is that Wirtz is playing a position where Bayern Munich has an abundance of talent. Thomas Müller, Jamal Musiala, and now, Paul Wanner, are the top attacking midfielder options on the roster for Julian Nagelsmann.

Would the club shell out a ton of money for another option at the position? Sure, Julian Nagelsmann’s formation is flexible, but that would seem to be a problem for everyone involved even with Müller (eventually) trying to wind his career down.

Moreover, Sport1’s Kerry Hau says that Wanner’s new deal will preclude Bayern Munich from making a move for Wirtz:

Also because of Wanner’s rise, Salihamidzic and Co. have no plans to sign expensive talent from outside like Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz (18).

Nagelsmann shows off skills (@FCBayernEN)

Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann never passes up an opportunity to flash his skill:

ICYMI: Bavarian Podcast Works Season 4, Episode 23 (Bavarian Football Works)

It’s been over a week since Bayern Munich last played a game, and we’re suffering from withdrawal symptoms. There aren’t any games to talk about, so let’s talk transfers! Bayern didn’t do any business this winter, but the rumor mills have been turning. No, we’re not gonna discuss meme transfers like Thomas Müller to Everton, but there’s plenty more else to get into.

In this episode, Tom and Ineednoname discuss:

• Talking about the ins and outs of the Niklas Süle decision — why is he leaving, and could Bayern have done more to keep him?
• Who should replace Süle — Andreas Christensen, Antonio Rüdiger, Chris Richards, or maybe someone else?
• The question marks over Leon Goretzka’s fitness, and what that means for the club going forward.

Wanner’s signing in video form (YouTube — FC Bayern)

Paul Wanner’s contract extension was met with great excitement at Bayern Munich. Now, you can see the highlights courtesy of Bayern Munich’s YouTube channel:

The big thing that Wanner offers (to me, anyway) is some hope for the youth campus. Some would say the campus has underperformed in the last five years, but things could be turning a corner as we see players like Wanner and Gabriel Vidovic training with the first team.

Sport1’s Kerry Hau summed up what Wanner will bring to the table like this:

Nagelsmann invited him to training for the first time when he was 15 - and was quickly impressed by his carefree attitude and maturity. “Paul is very creative and intuitive in his actions,” Moj praises his former protégé at SPORT1. “His technique, especially his first contact, and the one-on-one are his greatest weapons. type of street footballer.”

For Bayern, the extension with Wanner is a coup. They strengthen their squad in the medium to long term with an interesting player who doesn’t cost a fee and even has the Mia San Mia gene.

No academy is going to bat 1.000 (a baseball term for you), but there does appear to be some hope that Bayern Munich will become a player once again in the player development game — which should bolster the first team roster and team coffers alike.

Meyer moves on...again (Sport1)

Has there been a player who moves on as frequently as Max Meyer?

The once promising midfielder’s career plunged into uncertainty when he moved from Schalke 04 to Crystal Palace in 2018 (imagine someone’s career getting worse by leaving that dumpster fire).

Unable to establish himself in England and with his welcome worn out on the island, Meyer embarked on the following journey (cue Johnny Cash’s “I’ve Been Everywhere”): Schalke 04 > Crystal Palace > FC Köln > Fenerbahce > FC Midtjylland

Yup, Meyer is headed to FC Midtjylland in Denmark:

Former Schalke and Cologne midfielder Max Meyer is leaving Fenerbahce after just five months. The 26-year-old is moving to Danish club FC Midtjylland. The Danes announced this late in the evening. Meyer comes on loan, the deal includes an option to buy.

Meyer only switched from 1. FC Köln to Fenerbahce at the end of the summer transfer window. The midfielder was only used sporadically for the Turks, for whom Mesut Özil also plays. In total, it was enough for 12 competitive games, most of which were short-term appearances.

Meyer and Wolfsburg’s Max Philipp have really been work travelers during their careers. Anyway, Hansi Flick — allegedly — wanted to bring Meyer in on a free transfer, but was shot down. It makes you wonder if Flick could have set the midfielder straight and put him back on the once promising path that he was headed down earlier in his career.

ICYMI: Bavarian Podcast Works: Weekend Warm-up Podcast Season 1, Episode 35 (Bavarian Football Works)

There might not be a game for Bayern Munich this weekend, but it was an extremely eventful period nonetheless.

The news was certainly not the best if you are a fan of Niklas Süle, so examining the fallout from his expected departure is right atop of this week’s agenda. This is what we have on tap for this episode:

• Niklas Süle’s upcoming exit and a walk through of the top candidates to replace him. Will it be Matthias de Ligt, Nico Schlotterbeck, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, or Matthias Ginter? Or “maybe it’s something really cool that I don’t even know about” like Frank the Tank said in Old School.
• Could Bayern Munich have a legitimate shot to get Erling Haaland if Robert Lewandowski leaves?
• Alexander Nübel’s future at Bayern Munich is dependent on the length of Manuel Neuer’s contract extension.
• Why the FC Bayern: Behind the Legend documentary was terrific, painful, genuine — and ultimately well done — all at the same time.