Barcelona have been here before with Robert Lewandowski. One of Bayern Munich’s top players in Joshua Kimmich looks as if he is edging closer and closer to the exit door in Bavaria, and the Blaugrana are on high alert.
The German midfielder has not seen eye-to-eye with manager Thomas Tuchel, who incidentally has also been linked to Barcelona in recent weeks, and that has been exemplified in their last three matches. Kimmich started against Bayer Leverkusen in their 3-0 defeat on the bench. On Sunday, Kimmich was taken off by Tuchel in the 63rd minute with Bayern losing 2-1 to Bochum.
The match would end 3-2 to Bochum, and leave Tuchel’s job security ‘hanging by a thread’. Relations between Kimmich and Tuchel are supposedly completely broken, as was evidenced by the scowl on Kimmich’s face after the change. BILD, as carried by MD, report that he would also go on to have a heated argument with assistant Zsolt Low.
“I know what happened. This is a football dressing room, there are a lot of emotions in there. That does not mean anything. It’s a normal incident after a defeat,” Tuchel said after the match, trying to smooth things over.
Whether Tuchel does continue is another matter. Kimmich has already been linked with an exit, with his deal up in 2025, and no sign of a renewal on the horizon. Barcelona have been tracking him for some time, but would probably only be able to sign him were it on a free next summer. This one might come a bit too soon for them, especially if Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City follow through on their interest.
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