Daily Schmankerl: Manchester City seeking to build premier backline with Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies; Why Arsenal’s Kai Havertz is late joining Germany; Atlético Madrid names price to FC Barcelona for João Félix; Bayern players earn honors; & MORE!

City has direct need for Davies in 2024 (ESPN)

It seems like the whispers are getting a lot louder when it comes to the possibility of Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies leaving the club next summer.

For weeks, we have heard that Real Madrid is a big fan of Davies, but the rumored bid (€70 million) seems non-threatening. However, recent reports indicate that Manchester City could be an option for Davies, especially because Pep Guardiola’s club has a direct need at the position:

Manchester City and Real Madrid are prepared to battle it out in the pursuit of Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies, reports Calciomercato. Davies has emerged as one of the brightest talents in football, helping to contribute to five Bundesliga titles, alongside lifting the UEFA Champions League trophy in 2020, however his future with the club looks uncertain.

The Canada international is under contract with the Bundesliga champions until 2025 but has not committed to a new deal with the Bavarian outfit. As a result, Bayern could be forced into parting ways with Davies to ensure they receive a fee for the defender, as opposed to losing him on a free transfer in 2025.

Should the 22-year-old wish to leave Bayern, it is reported that Manchester City and Real Madrid are waiting in the wings. City are keen to bolster their left-back options, with the Premier League champions using centre-back Josko Gvardiol in the position, though the Croatia international is not a natural full-back.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, are also eager to add to their option, with Ferland Mendy’s future with Los Blancos unclear. The Spanish giants have also recently been linked with Boca Juniors left-back Valentin Barco, indicating that it is a position high on the priority list.

The agent for Davies has been using the media to get his point across — an extension for his client at Bayern Munich is not a sure thing. Certainly, nothing is off the table at this point, but Davies is at the stage of his career where a move would not be wholly unexpected. Jumping to Spain or England are logical choices for the Canadian if he does not consider himself to be someone who wants to be a lifer at Bayern Munich.

Havertz to join Germany late (@_kochmaximilian)

Arsenal FC midfielder Kai Havertz will be late in joining the German national team due to a dental procedure:

Nagelsmann says that Kai #Havertz will probably travel on Wednesday because of a dental operation. Otherwise everyone is fit - including Mats #Hummels after slight problems with his thigh. #DFBTeam @Abendzeitung

Bavarian Podcast Works: Weekend Warm-up Podcast Season 3, Episode 13 (Bavarian Football Works)

As Bayern Munich heads into another international break, the Bavarians will face a stiff test from SC Freiburg, but also have the opportunity to quiet some of noise surrounding the team.

Thomas Tuchel has the fanbase at each other’s throats and while the team is winning, things are not as pretty as most would like. There are transfer rumors and A LOT to talk about with the squad. So, let’s get to it! Here is what we have on tape for this episode:

• A preview of the Bayern Munich vs. SC Freiburg match where we take a look at the form of each team, the potential starting lineup for Bayern, and give a prediction on the match.
• Discussing the uneasy feeling that Bayern Munich’s wins are covering for a lot of flaws with the team.
• Bayern Munich is not getting the most out of Harry Kane...but why? Let’s talk about it.
• Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry, Alphonso Davies, Matthijs de Ligt, and Joshua Kimmich are just some of the names that have already been linked with a transfer away for next summer. Are these just baseless rumors or is there a brewing problem on the squad?
• Addressing those Jerome Boateng rumors.

FWIW — Bayern is Europe’s highest rated team (@WhoScored)

If you are into advanced analytics, Bayern Munich is the highest rated team in Europe this season:

Does Bayern get a trophy for that?

Atléti wants €80 million for loanee (AS via 90Min.com)

Atlético Madrid wants a cool €80 million from FC Barcelona for João Félix:

Atlético Madrid have set Barcelona an asking price of €80m to make the loan move for Portugal forward Joao Felix a permanent one.

All I can picture is the McNulty quote from The Wire when his ex-wife wanted more alimony, “Blood from a stone, darlin’.”

Bavarian Podcast Works — Flagship Show: Season 6, Episode 13 (Bavarian Football Works)

So Bayern Munich beat SC Freiburg, a rather decent team, 3-0 without breaking a sweat. For once, a Thomas Tuchel coached Bayern side have demonstrated a performance that is both dominant and convincing. In the meantime, Julian Nagelsmann announced his first list of callups for Germany, with some notable names on the list. Plenty to talk about from the past week.

In this episode, INNN and Schnitzel discuss the following:

• Schnitzel recounts his visit to watch Bayern Munich away at Copenhagen.
• How Thomas Müller made the entire team click versus SC Freiburg.
• Is Leroy Sane the best player in the world right now? INNN and Schnitzel have differing views.
• Why Harry Kane maybe needs to be more selfish.
• Are performances like these enough to keep Thomas Tuchel’s job safe?
• Moving onto the national team — highlights from Nagelsmann’s callups.
• Is Mats Hummels the answer in attack?
• Should Nagelsmann go with a strikerless setup for Germany?
• What kind of lineup can you make with the players Nagelsmann called up?
• How things can go very wrong against the USA and Mexico.

Bayern Alumni: Pavard taking heat with Inter (Sempre Inter)

Benjamin Pavard’s tenure at Inter Milan is off to a solid start, but the Frenchman is taking some heat for — allegedly — allowing the game-tying goal against Sassuolo (at least according to Alessandro Matri):

Former Juventus and Sassuolo striker Alessandro Matri believes that defender Benjamin Pavard was the biggest culprit as Bologna equalized against Inter Milan in Saturday afternoon’s 2-2 Serie A draw. The former striker spoke to Italian broadcaster DAZN, via FCInterNews, also giving the view that the Nerazzurri have dropped off more than he had expected.

Pavard has broadly gotten off to a good start to life at Inter. After taking a couple weeks to integrate into the team, the Frenchman has slotted straight into the starting eleven.

And Pavard has, in most respects, justified the fee that Inter paid to sign him from Bayern Munich.

The Nerazzurri brought the 27-year-old in with no shortage of pressure on his shoulders. He is the player who they have identified to replace Milan Skriniar in the starting eleven following the Slovakian’s departure to join Paris Saint-Germain at the end of his contract.

But on Saturday afternoon, the former Bayern defender experienced his first big stumble in an Inter shirt. Asked about the Bologna equalizer, Matri said that “In my opinion, Pavard is the culprit.”

And of the draw against the Rossoblu, the former Bianconeri striker said that “I really didn’t expect it from them because I rate them as superior to the other teams. Even after their performance in the Champions League, I wasn’t expecting they’d stumble in matches like these.”

Matri argued that “It seemed like in the first few matches, they were a team with more awareness. Instead, they’re still dropping off in these matches.”

Bayern players earn recognition (@WhoScored)

Bayern Munich’s Leroy Sané, Kingsley Coman, and Kim Min-jae were recognized for their respective performances against SC Freiburg:

Sané and Coman were also selected for Bild’s Bundesliga Team of the Week: