Daily Schmankerl: The aftermath of Germany vs. USA; Pep Guardiola might have Joshua Kimmich alternative at Manchester City; Uli Hoeneß says Bayern Munich won’t be active in January; + MORE!

Die Folgen: Germany’s 3-1 over the United States (Bavarian Football Works)

Former Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann came away from his first game as coach of the German national team completely unscathed as Die Mannschaft picked up a 3-1 victory over the United States.

It was far from perfect, but Germany desperately needed a win and Nagelsmann was able to guide them them to just that. Let’s take a look at some quick hitters from the match:

• As always, let’s look at the starting XI:

• Honestly, this was pretty much what most people thought would happen once Joshua Kimmich was declared out.
• Christian Pulisic’s for the USMNT was a fantastic individual effort, while İlkay Gündoğan
• İlkay Gündoğan and Niclas Füllkrug both should have given Germany the lead early in the second half, but both came up empty.
• Leroy Sané was a menace.
• Conversely, I still do not like what Florian Wirtz is doing with the national team. He just does not look nearly as good with Germany as he does with Bayer Leverkusen.
• It feels like Jamal Musiala is still trying to do too much at times. He is such a great talent, but seems to put too much weight on his shoulders.
• Niclas Füllkrug’s 58th minute goal to give Germany a 2-1 lead was a thing of beauty given the deft pass to the striker from the much-maligned Robin Gosens. The whole sequence was terrific.
• Just a few minutes later Musiala tapped home a pass from Füllkrug to make it 3-1.
• It felt like neither team really wanted to go full bore in this match. At times, Germany looked like it could have just passed the ball around for extended periods if it really wanted to. The USMNT was very tentative for long stretches.
• It was very cool to see the American crowd give Thomas Müller a nice applause when entering the match in the 81st minute.
• Niklas Süle almost had an absolute golazo in the 86th minute that would have probably cause a riot, but it went high and wide.
• Overall, it was not perfect, but it was progress and a good start for Germany during Nagelsmann’s tenure. Nagelsmann’s first match ended in a win and the team did look to be more “attack-minded” (though the USMNT seemed like it wanted to just watch at times). Germany did its job and looked good for long stretches of times. In short, take the victory and run.

If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast give them a look or a listen:

Pep could go for “new Kimmich: instead of “old Kimmich” (Manchester City News)

Recently, there have been rumors linking Bayern Munich star Joshua Kimmich to a reunion with his old boss, Pep Guardiola, at Manchester City. However, Guardiola could have his eye on a younger version of Kimmich — Royal Antwerp’s Arthur Vermeeren:

Manchester City have been linked with a move for the highly coveted young Belgian midfielder Arthur Vermeeren – and he’s a player who could become Pep Guardiola’s new Joshua Kimmich.

City are always looking to add talented young players to their squad. The squad is in a very healthy place right now, with man stars 25 and under. City could well dominate for years with the players they have. But it is always important to look out for those hidden gems.

And Vermeeren is one of those. Although he is certainly becoming more well known after some brilliant performances for Royal Antwerp. And some interesting comparisons have already been made about the 18-year-old…

Pep Guardiola could find his new Joshua Kimmich in Arthur Vermeeren

Once upon a time, Pep Guardiola was the manager of Bayern Munich. And during his time at the helm at the Allianz Arena, there was one player that was key for him.

Joshua Kimmich made 36 appearances under Pep at Bayern. And he played a variety of positions, including right-back, centre-back and holding midfield. Amazingly, in games he got minutes, Kimmich was only ever on the losing side once under Pep.

In recent times there has been speculation linking Kimmich to City to reunite with Pep. Kimmich actually coming to City may be tricky. Because he is now one of Bayern’s top stars and still has more than 18 months left on his contract. But perhaps Guardiola may find a Kimmich regen in the form of Vermeeren, whom City have apparently already made enquiries about.

Football Talent Scout report that the teenager is actually a similar type of player to the Germany international. They list a number of exciting attributes he has such as being ‘a modern holding midfielder’, being ‘a very interesting mix of a ball-winning midfielder and midfield controller’, and having ‘a very good range of passing at all distances’.

He is also described as ‘a tactically intelligent midfielder’.

Hoeneß disputes rumors on active transfer window (RTL via @iMiaSanMia)

Bayern Munich legend Uli Hoeneß thinks Bayern Munich will have a relatively quiet transfer window in January:

Uli Hoeneß says there will be no major ‘transfer offensive’ in January: “If we feel that we need additions by then, we will do so. We can’t always just live in the here and now, but we have to make sure this club is healthy for the next ten years. We’re proud that we’ve been living from a fixed deposit account for 30 years. And that’s how things should stay.”

Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Podcast: Season 3, Episode 14 (Bavarian Football Works)

Bayern Munich might not be active during this international break, but there is certainly a lot to discuss on the club — and also with the German national team.

For the first segment, we are catching up with our old pal — Daily Mail journalist Jake Fenner — to talk all things Die Mannschaft.

Why waste any more time babbling about what we will talk about, though? Let’s get down to it. This is what we have on tap for this week’s episode:

• A look at Germany’s first roster under Julian Nagelsmann and what to expect as Die Mannschaft prepares to square off against the United States and Mexico — featuring Jake Fenner.
• Grading Bayern Munich’s position groups to this point in the season. Where the team is succeeding and what positions might need some work.
• Addressing the recent transfer rumors linking Alphonso Davies to Real Madrid and Manchester City, while also looking at the possibility of an exit for Joshua Kimmich this summer as Pep Guardiola might be looking for a reunion. Also, those very early rumors on Jamal Musiala.

Maguire never had deal with Hammers (Sky)

There were numerous reports over the summer that Harry Maguire had a deal to move to West Ham, but Manchester United would not allow it to happen. Maguire recently said that there was no agreement in place, however, that might not have been the case:

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has spoken out about reports linking him with a move to West Ham in the summer.

Speaking in his press conference ahead of England’s friendly against Australia, he said: “Regular game time is really important to me, it has been throughout all my career. The actual opportunity to go to West Ham wasn’t really agreed between both clubs and myself, so it wasn’t just my chance to say yes and I’m going. The actual opportunity wasn’t there because we didn’t get far enough down the line with it. West Ham are a massive club, but my full focus is still on Manchester United. I want to fight for my place, but, of course, game time is really important to me.”

Koné firmly on Bayern’s radar (Get German Football News)

Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder Manu Koné is reportedly a primary target for Bayern Munich in January:

As reported by Bild, Bayern Munich are considering a January move for Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder Manu Koné.

A combination of summer transfer failures and persistent injuries has meant that Bayern are looking to add further reinforcement in both the midfield and defensive areas in January. But, while the search for a future centre-half goes on, the record champions have already been able to identify three key targets in midfield.

With Thomas Tuchel hoping to add a natural number six to his side, there is still belief within the Bayern camp that a deal for João Palhinha will eventually be finalised in January. However, if this is not the case, then Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips could be an option for Die Rekordmeister.

Nevertheless, this would not prevent Bayern from attempting to lure Gladbach’s Manu Koné to the club. The French under-21 international is considered to be an all-round midfielder rather than primarily a number six.

However, the Bavarians would face competition from Liverpool for his signature, as Koné is high up on the wishlist of Jürgen Klopp. Nonetheless, while the 22-year-old is not a priority for Bayern, they have already made contact with his management to test the waters for a possible deal.

Arrizabalaga talks potential Bayern move (Sports Mole)

Kepa Arrizabalaga is very happy on loan with Real Madrid, as opposed to making the move to Bayern Munich last summer:

On-loan Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has claimed that he is “very happy” at Real Madrid and jumped at the chance to sign for Los Blancos despite interest from Bayern Munich.

The 29-year-old quickly ousted backup goalkeeper Andriy Lunin from the XI and has started each of Real Madrid’s last nine matches across all tournaments, keeping a respectable five clean sheets in the process.

Prior to returning to his homeland, the former Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper was targeted by German champions Bayern, whose long-serving number one Manuel Neuer is on the long road to recovery from a broken leg.

However, in an interview with Spanish outlet AS, Kepa revealed that his loan to Real Madrid was completed within “a few hours”, and he did not think twice when learning of Los Blancos’ interest.

“The loan with Madrid was very quick. Everything was closed in a few hours, with just two phone calls. I had spent five seasons at a big club, Chelsea, and I thought a change could be good for me,” Kepa said. “It’s true that there was the option of Bayern... but Real Madrid called and I didn’t think about it. If there were other opportunities before it doesn’t matter, what matters is that it became a reality last summer.”

(Editor’s Note: The author was drunk as hell when writing this, so please read with a curve, like a high school Algebra teacher)