Daily Schmankerl: Is Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala pushing for a January move? Real Madrid, Liverpool, and Manchester City hope so; FC Barcelona wanted to bring back Neymar; Thomas Müller does it again; City wants a haul for Kalvin Phillips; + MORE

Report: Playing time worries have Musiala pondering January exit (The Hard Tackle)

Let’s preface this report from Football Insider (captured by The Hard Tackle) by saying Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel is bending over backwards to accommodate Jamal Musiala and his desire to start at the No. 10 position in every game.

Now that we have put that disclaimer out there, the report states that Musiala is not happy with his role and could push for a move in January.

Say what?

Yeah, let’s dig in:

Real Madrid, Liverpool and Manchester City receive a major boost in their pursuit of Bayern Munich sensation Jamal Musiala. According to a report by Football Insider, Musiala could part ways with Bayern Munich in the near future as the 20-year-old sensation is not happy with his role at the German club. So, Real Madrid, Liverpool and Manchester City have received a major boost as they are keen on having the player, currently on an £83,000-a-week deal, in their ranks.

Musiala was a part of the Chelsea youth setup before joining Bayern Munich in the summer of 2019. In just a year’s time, he went from their Under-17 setup to their first team. Despite being just 20, he already has 136 appearances for the first team and 61 goal contributions.

The 20-year-old attacking midfielder is a huge prospect for the future and is amongst the best young players in world football. Musiala’s performances have made him a regular in the German national team.

Musiala was expected to continue at Bayern for years to come. But his current situation could result in a potential exit. His contract runs until the summer of 2026, and there are talks about extending it. But, the player will not be happy with a second-string role at the German club. The former Chelsea prospect has started in just three out of their nine Bundesliga games. And, the situation has not pleased him. He is not a regular starter under new boss Thomas Tuchel and if things carry on in a similar fashion, he could look to part ways with the club.

I have to break in here with a mid-block quote rant...the stats were put together before the weekend given the numbers, but one game of rest and two games out with an injury is not amount of bench time with a heavy international slate, plus DFB-Pokal and Champions League games. Anyway, let’s carry on as Manchester City, Liverpool FC, and Real Madrid are all names as potential landing spots for Musiala...again:

Manchester City, Liverpool and Real Madrid are all keen on having him in their ranks. All three of the clubs have been monitoring his situation closely, and he will surely be a great addition to their ranks.

Kevin De Bruyne is already 32 and has been subject to quite a few injuries of late. As a result, Musiala could be an ideal replacement, and City are very keen on acquiring his services. As far as Liverpool are concerned, the future of Mohamed Salah is uncertain.

The Egypt international is linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, and he will most likely part ways with the club. While they do have the attack sorted for the next few years, Klopp is looking for another midfielder and he would love to have Musiala in his ranks. Salah’s departure will give them the needed finances to strike a deal with Bayern as the 20-year-old is valued at more than £100 million.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid are always on the lookout for exceptional talent and Musiala is certainly is special talent. As a result, they would surely push for his services if he becomes available. With the £83,000-a-week prospect considering his future, it will be interesting to see if a January move sees the light of day.

Of all of the reports we have seen about a potential exit for Musiala, this one seems the most outlandish. Who knows, though, maybe Musiala is turning into a monster behind-the-scenes or something.

Maybe...but probably not.

Barca contemplated Neymar move before Saudi interest (Sport via 90Min.com)

Believe it or not, FC Barcelona was — allegedly — seriously thinking about bringing back Neymar, but a rich offer from the Saudis got in the way:

Barcelona explored re-signing Neymar from PSG this summer on a low-cost deal or loan, but Al Hilal’s interest changed the situation and he ended up heading to Saudi Arabia instead.

Neymar, if course, ended up tearing his ACL, so his season is likely over unless he can make a surprisingly quick and dramatic comeback at some point.

This is pretty cool (OptaFranz)

Bayern Munich star Thomas Müller just keeps going:

It will be interesting to see how Thomas Tuchel handles his squad for the Borussia Dortmund match next weekend. With only Konrad Laimer available to play the midfield, the coach could drop Musiala back to play the No. 8 and have Müller play the No. 10, but the coach seems to be reluctant to shift Musiala out of that role. That will be test against BVB as Tuchel might not have any other option (barring the completely healthy return of Raphaël Guerreiro).

Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Podcast: Season 3, Episode 16 (Bavarian Football Works)

It has been an active week for Bayern Munich...and BFW.

Aside of a big win in the Champions League for Bayern Munich over Galatasaray, we saw BFW crash (at the worst possible time), a slew of transfer rumors, and some iffy coaching decisions that all lead into a Bundesliga match vs. SV Darmstadt.

Clearly, this was a crazy week and we have plenty to talk about, so let’s get to it. Here is what is on tap for this episode:

• A preview of Bayern Munich vs. SV Darmstadt.
• Some thoughts on Bayern Munich’s win over Galatasaray in the Champions League.
• Thomas Tuchel’s handling of Thomas Müller is foretelling the future for the veteran.
• The latest transfer news on Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies.
• BFW’s big crash.
• Why losing sucks (duh!).

Chelsea could try to lure Gavi to England (Sport via 90Min.com)

Chelsea FC is contemplating throwing a lot of money at Barca for Gavi:

Chelsea could also splash out €100m (£87m) on Gavi, with Barcelona fearing they may have to cash in on the youngster to help manage their financial misery.

City prepared to ask €57 million for Phillips (The Mirror)

Get ready to throw some cold water on those Kalvin Phillips-to-Bayern Munich transfer rumors. Manchester City could want as much as £50million:

Manchester City want to make a profit on Kalvin Phillips - despite the England midfielder starting just five games in his 15 months at the Etihad.

The Premier League champions are aware that there’s a host of clubs interested in signing the former Leeds favourite when the transfer window opens in January and have set an asking price of £50million. That’s a healthy £8million mark-up on the £42million City paid the Yorkshire club in the summer of 2022.

Newcastle are circling after losing £55million signing Sandro Tonali for 10 months after the Italian admitted breaking gambling regulations in his home country. Meeting City’s asking price will not be a problem for the Toon.

But Newcastle face competition from Liverpool, Juventus, West Ham and Aston Villa for a player who will turn 28 in December.

Interestingly, Bayern Munch was not listed as a potential suitor for Phillips in The Mirror’s report.

Spurs eyeing Sancho? (Sportskeeda)

Tottenham Hotspur could be eyeing disgruntled Manchester United attacker Jadon Sancho:

Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly interested in signing Manchester United outcast Jadon Sancho in the coming winter transfer window.

Sancho, 23, has been a hot topic of transfer speculation since being phased out of the Red Devils’ first-team setup this season. He is reportedly forced to train and eat away from his squad currently after publicly calling out Erik ten Hag for his post-game comments last September.

With his relationship with the former Ajax manager currently in tatters, Sancho has lately been linked with a move away from Old Trafford. He has reportedly attracted transfer interest from his former club Borussia Dortmund, Juventus and Chelsea in the last couple of weeks.

Now, according to Fichajes.net, Tottenham Hotspur are keen to snap up Sancho to strengthen their squad next January. Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou is believed to be an admirer of the player, who has made just three substitute appearances for his team this campaign.

Borussia Dortmund is supposed to be in the mix, but it remains to be seen if BVB is willing to engage in any type of bidding war for the Englishman.

Bavarian Podcast Works: Postgame Show — Bayern Munich 8-0 Darmstadt (Bundesliga)

This may be the craziest Bundesliga game in years. Bayern Munich went down to ten men early in the first half thanks to a Joshua Kimmich red card, but instead of capitalizing on that opportunity, Darmstadt surrender the advantage by getting two red cards themselves.

Here are our talking points from the game:

• Why doesn’t Tuchel rotate the lineup more?
• Harry Kane is in the same situation as Erling Haaland at Man City last year.
• Why Thomas Müller is the man that Bayern Munich needs.
• Thomas Tuchel needs to improve performances — this is still far from good enough.
• The inefficiency of Tuchelball right now.
• Is Joshua Kimmich a liability? What happens in midfield versus Dortmund?
• Leroy Sané deserves to be considered the best player in the world right now — but is he being overplayed?
• Manuel Neuer makes a triumphant return to the starting XI.