Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City are all huge admirers of Bayern Munich star Joshua Kimmich and reports suggest he’s likely to move this summer.
The experienced midfielder has just 12 months remaining on his contract and Bayern’s attempts to tie him down to a new deal have all failed up to now.
Kimmich is reportedly ready to take on a new challenge elsewhere as he believes he’s achieved all he can with the German giants.
He joined Bayern back in 2015, during Pep Guardiola’s time as their manager, and has made 390 appearances to date, winning an incredible 20 major trophies in the process.
The uncertainty surrounding Kimmich’s future has caught the attention of some of the biggest clubs in Europe.
According to Sky Sports Germany, the 29-year-old is open to seeing out his contract and leaving on a free transfer next summer, but Bayern wants to avoid that.
As a result, Vincent Kompany’s side are ‘open’ to selling Kimmich and Liverpool, Arsenal, Man City, Barcelona and Real Madrid are all in the race.
Prem trio admire Joshua Kimmich
The report claims that Bayern expect to generate a ‘decent amount’ from the sale of Kimmich despite his contract situation.
Liverpool are keen to add another midfielder to their squad despite completely revamping their options in the position last summer.
Arsenal, on the other hand, want to bring in a replacement for Thomas Partey, who looks likely to seal a move to Saudi Arabia in the coming weeks.
As for Man City, they were keen on a deal for Lucas Paqueta this summer but will now focus on other midfield targets with that move now off.
As mentioned, Pep Guardiola worked with Kimmich during his time at Bayern and still has a good relationship with the 29-year-old. Kimmich would be keen to play under the Spanish coach again at the Etihad.
It will be interesting to see who makes the first move in the race for the centre-mid as everything points towards him leaving Bayern this summer.
Kimmich is currently away on international duty with Germany at Euro 2024 and he will hold talks with his suitors once the tournament ends.
Kimmich’s relationship with Bayern at an all-time low
In a recent interview, Kimmich opened up on why his relationship with Bayern has broken down.
In October 2021, the he revealed he had chosen not to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. This led to a considerable amount of public uproar.
“It was a really brutal time. When you have friends who tell you that if you had been vaccinated, there would be fewer… Well, a friend told me that fewer people would have died if I had been vaccinated. That’s brutal,” Kimmich told ZDF.
“If you don’t have a family around you, you can fall apart.
“I felt left alone for too long. I’ve been at the club for almost seven years now, and there haven’t been that many scandals surrounding me.
“That was the first downturn; that’s when I noticed how the club reacted, and I’m disappointed and hurt.”
