Bayern Munich Alumni: Robert Lewandowski claims he didn’t speak to Xavi about Joshua Kimmich

For a brief while this summer, Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich was very much a topic of discussion at Barcelona, as Xavi was looking to strengthen his midfield during the summer transfer window. Additionally, the club also would’ve been open to tying Kimmich down to a deal to join in the future, but Bayern’s number 6 isn’t going anywhere for now and faces a crucial period in terms of contract negotiations since his current Bayern deal ends in June 2025.

In midfield, Barcelona wound up signing İlkay Gündoğan from Manchester City and Oriol Romeu from Girona, having lost Franck Kessié to Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League. For what Xavi is looking for, he felt that Kimmich could pair very well alongside Gavi and Gundogan, but had to look elsewhere given Kimmich’s allegiance to Bayern, at least for now.

Robert Lewandowski recently spoke about Kimmich’s links to Barcelona, revealing that he never spoke to Xavi about his former Bayern teammate, but rather only the player. “I only spoke with Jo himself about his situation at Bayern. There was a lot of unrest and uncertainty over there in the past months. That can have an effect on a team. But we only spoke as friends and former teammates — I did not try to lure him to Barcelona,” he said per Tobi Altschaffl (via @iMiaSanMia).

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The Poland captain was well aware of the fact that there were some roadblocks with Kimmich’s contract negotiation progression, but Bayern’s front office has continually echoed the sentiment that Kimmich is very much a core, key member of the club and a future captain. He is as synonymous with Bayern as veterans like Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller, Kingsley Coman, and Serge Gnabry.

Sporting director Christoph Freund, in concert with Bayern’s front office, is going to be tasked with handling the contract negotiations for players like Kimmich that have contracts expiring in the summer of 2025. Hopefully for Bayern, they are able to tie the number 6 down to a new deal and commit his future to the club.