Daily Schmankerl: The latest news on Cristiano Ronaldo to Bayern Munich; PSG, Real Madrid in pursuit of Liverpool’s Sadio Mane; Chelsea eyeing Ousmane Dembele; Romelu Lukaku back to Inter Milan?; Gareth Bale to Cardiff City?; & MORE!

Ronaldo not an option for Bayern (Christian Falk via @iMiaSanMia)

Bayern Munich’s offseason has already been absolutely wild, but the rumors that broke last weekend linking the Rekordmeister to Manchester United mega-star Cristiano Ronaldo seemed to push things to an apex of craziness.

Alas, however, the fervor that built up around the Ronaldo news was likely all for naught. In fact, Sport Bild’s Christian Falk is reporting that Ronaldo is not in Bayern Munich’s plans — even if Robert Lewandowski exits this summer:

If you want to next level conspiracy theory, you could read into that wording and say to yourself, “Okay, that just denies that it is Ronaldo, but it could be another Mendes client, right?”

Uh, I guess, so, who else does Mendes represent? Let’s take a look at the most notable players (per FootballTransfers.com):

• Ruben Dias
• Bernardo Silva
• Fabinho
• Joao Cancelo
• Diogo Jota
• Ederson
• Ruben Neves
• Andre Silva
• Renato Sanches
• Adama Traore
• Nelson Semedo
• Angel Di Maria
• James Rodriguez

In the past, Bayern Munich has been linked to Joao Cancelo and Andre Silva, but moves for either player seem very unlikely at this point.

I am not on #TeamCristiano here, so it’s no big loss for me. For those of you who wanted him, drop why you felt that way in the comments.

PSG, Madrid to up ante on Mane? (Caught Offside)

With Sadio Mane reportedly closing in on a deal with Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid might be ready to try and up their respective offers to convince Mane to change his mind:

Liverpool’s Sadio Mane looks set to leave the club this summer as Bayern Munich close in on the forward but the German champions now face competition from Paris Saint-Germain. Bayern Munich are being heavily linked with a move for Mane, but Bild now reports that PSG also forms part of that race for the 30-year-old’s signature.

The report states that the Ligue 1 champions are ready to spend big on the Senegal international and with the funding the Paris club have, they could outbid Bayern and offer Mane significantly more wages. At present, Bayern are willing to pay an initial £30million to sign Mane from Liverpool according to Sky Sport in Germany and the Bundesliga side have already laid out their offer, with up to €10million available in bonuses.

Barca Universal also captured some news that could make things complicated for Bayern Munich. Real Madrid is also said to be in the running for Mane:

BILD (h/t SPORT) claims that the Bundesliga champions have identified Liverpool superstar Sadio Mane as their preferred candidate to replace Lewandowski at the Allianz Arena. Indeed, it has even been claimed that Die Roten are making progress towards landing the forward from Liverpool.

However, as per the report, Bayern Munich may be set to encounter some roadblocks in their pursuit of Mane as Real Madrid and PSG have emerged as suitors for the Senegalese speedster.

NUFC, Spurs eyeing Tolisso (Football 365)

Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur are both reportedly going to make a strong effort to sign former Bayern Munich midfielder Corentin Tolisso:

Bayern Munich midfielder Corentin Tolisso is open to a move to England this summer after announcing he will leave the German champions this summer. The French midfielder is out-of-contract this summer and he has confirmed that he won’t be extending his stay with the Bundesliga side.

Tottenham and Newcastle have been linked with a move for the midfielder in the past and could look to take advantage of him being available on a free at the end of this month. And the 27-year-old has now admitted a move to England would suit his playing style, but refused to rule out a move to any league.

Bavarian Podcast Works Season 4, Episode 33 (Bavarian Football Works)

It’s been two weeks since our last main episode, and plenty of news has come out since then. While there are no games to talk about, Bayern Munich are at the center of a transfer storm involving clubs across Europe. While Robert Lewandowski continues to push for a move to Barcelona, Brazzo and Nagelsmann eye Liverpool’s Sadio Mane as a major transfer coup for the summer. Meanwhile, the fanbase begins to speculate about what the squad will look like in two months.

In this episode, INNN and Teddy discuss:

• The Sadio Mane transfer in-depth — how much would he cost, where would he play if he comes, and how would Bayern use him?
• The implications of signing Mane on the rest of the squad, especially Robert Lewandowski and Serge Gnabry.
• Potential pitfalls of a Mane to Bayern transfer.
• Should Bayern Munich switch to a striker-less system next season?
• Can Julian Nagelsmann really pull off a system without a striker? Does he even want to?
• The problem with switching to a system without a striker.
• A striker-less system or a Lewandowski-replacement — which is better?
• Moving onto the final topic, what exactly is Bayern’s plan for transfers this summer?
• So many questions to answer — does Bayern want a center back? Who are the main targets for the summer? What will the squad look like next season? What is the team’s biggest weakness? Are the needs being met?
• Should Julian Nagelsmann be more or less involved in transfer planning?
• What will Bayern look like at the start of next season?

Bale headed to Cardiff? (talkSPORT)

Gareth Bale could be contemplating a move to Cardiff City:

One of the biggest names who could move this summer is Bale, who has just won his fifth Champions League winners medal after Real Madrid’s 1-0 victory over Liverpool.

The bookies have Championship club Cardiff as the favourites to sign him, which could be an incredible addition for the Welsh side.

Bale grew up as a fan of the Bluebirds and plays home games for the Wales national team at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Ahead of the World Cup at the end of the year – which Wales can qualify for when they face either Scotland or Ukraine on Sunday – boss Robert Page said a move to the second-tier side ‘makes sense’ and ‘ticks all the boxes’…

Chelsea sliding into Dembele sweepstakes? (talkSPORT)

Chelsea FC already has an overabundance of players for its attack...and might be interested in adding FC Barcelona’s Ousmane Dembele:

Dembele could also be on the move after a similarly underwhelming big-money transfer. He joined Barcelona for £135m from Borussia Dortmund five years ago but injuries have stopped him from fulfilling his potential.

Reports state that the 25-year-old could be one of the first signings of Todd Boehly’s reign as Chelsea owner. PSG have been heavily linked with bringing him back to France, however, which could see him replace Angel di Maria, who Juventus are targeting on a free transfer.

Lukaku to join Inter on loan? (Daily Mail)

It looks like Romelu Lukaku could be on his way back to Inter Milan:

Romelu Lukaku has agreed to rejoin Inter Milan on loan next season, according to reports in Italy - with the Chelsea star prepared to cut his wages by £3.8MILLION to seal a Serie A return, a year after leaving the San Siro

Italian outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport state that the 29-year-old has agreed to rejoin Inter on loan for the 2022-23 campaign, with the move now in the hands of both clubs.

Or...

Barca interested in Lukaku? (Football Espana)

FC Barcelona could be plotting to get Romelu Lukaku as a contingency plan in the event Robert Lewandowski is not made available this summer:

On Friday, we saw news that Romelu Lukaku could be re-joining Inter Milan, but now FC Barcelona might be interested in the Belgian should things fall apart with Robert Lewandowski:

Barcelona are considering moving for Romelu Lukaku if they fail in their bid to land Robert Lewandowski this summer according to a report by Mundo Deportivo. Sadio Mane is also in the picture.

Ronald Koeman had wanted to sign Lukaku in the summer of 2020 but Barcelona’s economic conditions prevented him from doing so. The pair had worked together at Everton.

Rüdiger goes Twitter official with Madrid (@ToniRuediger)

Former Chelsea FC defender and Germany international Antonio Rüdiger announced he has moved to Real Madrid: