Bayern Munich News: The aftermath of FC Bayern vs. VfL Wolfsburg; Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur still want Harry Kane; and MORE!

Die Folgen: Bayern’s 8-1 win over Wolfsburg (Bavarian Football Works)

The Bundesliga returned to Bavaria as Bayern Munich hosted Wolfsburg in an entertaining match that featured an overwhelming effort by the home side.

Let’s get into how everything played out for Bayern Munich’s

smashing 8-1 victory over the Wolves in a game that had a lot of intriguing elements. Here are some quick hitters on the match:

As always, let’s begin with the starting XI:

Finally! No knock to anyone else, but seeing Tom Bischof and Aleksandar Pavlović together from the start of a match in a Bundesliga was something a lot of fans wanted and Kompany finally obliged. Otherwise, it was the standard lineup that most would have expected.
Kim Min-jae picked up a thigh injury and was held out, while Alphonso Davies and Sacha Boey were both sick. At game time, Boey was listed as being ill for 37 days by Transfermarkt, with five games missed due to the sickness. That seems…odd. It is a wonder how no one in the German media has questioned this. Is it a lingering illness? Something more serious? Is he being punished for the insubordination toward Kompany in the Hinrunde? Hopefully, it is nothing serious or life-threatening. Last time, there was a topic the German media willfully ignored (and rightfully so), it was the tragic situation with Sven Ulreich’s son. Let’s hope it is nothing like that.
Bayern Munch got on the board very early. Josip Stanišić sent a through ball into Luis Díaz, who whipped a cross toward a surging Michael Olise, but the pass never reached the target. Wolfsburg’s Killian Fischer (maybe with some help from a nudge from Olise) put the ball into his own net.
Diaz should have scored in the 10th minute. After a perfectly timed run and a deft touch, the Colombian’s accuracy betrayed him. It could have easily been 2-0.
Bayern Munich had its moment early for sure, but was not totally on-point — as expected. The first game back, even with a midweek friendly, is always a little choppy to start.
Wolfsburg would even it up rather quickly when Dženan Pejčinović received a perfectly slid pass from Lovro Majer and beat Manuel Neuer. Konrad Laimer made an attempt to stop the pass, but whiffed, while Jonathan Tah could not recover in time to help.
Make no mistake, Wolfsburg was desperate and trying to prove it should not be down near the bottom of the table. The Wolves were determined to try and escape with at least a point.
Stanišić taking a bigger role with set pieces is interesting. Yes, Kimmich was out, but maybe this is something that Kompany has seen in training.
Bayern Munich had some unnecessary fouls due to frustration in the first half.
The Bavarians would take a 2-1 lead after a nice sequence where Kane, playing deeper, sent a long, diagonal ball to the right-side to Laimer, who fed Olise. After cutting the ball back to his left foot, the Frenchman sent in a looping cross, which Díaz headed into the net. Just a great run of play there.
Wolfsburg defender Moritz Jenz collided with Kane and left the Englishman crumpled on the grass. It was a scary moment, but Kane, after some limping, was okay.
Díaz attempted to find Olise with a cross in the 36th minute to return the favor, but misfired badly.
In the 39th minute, Lennart Karl was all alone and fired his attempt right at Wolfsburg goalkeeper Kamil Grabara. The phenom expertly darted into open space, but knows he left a goal on the pitch. It was a great ball by Olise to send Karl in.
In the 50th minute, you could see the look in Olise’s eye — he was going to goal and he was not going to be stopped. Ultimately, he ripped a left-footed (shocker) shot from the top of the box, which Grabara had no chance. What a rocket for a 3-0 lead!
Minutes later, Kane — again! — sent a long, diagonal ball to the right side which found Olise. The Frenchman slid a pass toward Díaz, but Jenz was there to put it into his own net.
In the 58th minute, Kompany subbed in Leon Goretzka for Pavlović and Raphaël Guerreiro for Karl.
The Pavlović-Bischof pairing was good after an uneven start where things were choppy. They do need some time to build chemistry, but it was a solid showing (not great). As for Karl, he was not as active as normal and missed that one big chance he had. Surely, he would have liked to have a better match in front of the home fans, but it was not horrible or anything.
In the 68th minute, Bayern Munich took advantage of Wolfsburg standing around complaining as Goretzka sent a quick, direct, through ball to Kane, who found Guerreiro to make it 5-1.
A minute later, Kane rifled in a superb goal from the left-side, which pinged off the crossbar and post in the upper righthand corner to make it 6-1. What a freakin’ goal!
Goretzka was actually excellent after coming on (hides from tomatoes being thrown!).
Olise did it again in the 76th minute after a strong run of play for Bayern Munich. This time, Olise used his right foot and it was — AGAIN! — Díaz, who had the assist with a brilliant pass.
Wisdom Mike and Felipe Chavez made late appearances, while Stanišić had to leave early with an injury. Hopefully, it is nothing serious for the Croatian.
Finally, Goretzka pulled some magic out of his hat with a crazy, sliding, bad-angle goal in the 89th minute. At that moment, thousands of phones got launched into the air or the ground.
Overall, Bayern Munich dominated the match, but did get a reminder that there will always be a target on its back. Bayern Munich was just simply overwhelming, though, and dominated the game. Now, it is a quick turnaround for FC Köln on Wednesday. The Bavarians will be heavy favorites, but will need to show a proper mentality to avoid an upset on the road.

If you are looking for more coverage of the match, check out the Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, and Postgame Podcast. Give them a look or a listen:

United, Spurs still want Kane (CaughtOffside)

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur still both have dreams of bringing Harry Kane back to England:

The attacker has been on the radar of several English clubs recently, including Manchester United who are showing interest in signing him to solve their goal scoring issues.

His former team Tottenham are also interested in a move to bring Kane back to the Premier League.

However, both Man United and Spurs are set to suffer transfer heartbreak with Kane edging closer to extending his deal with the Bundesliga champions.

Since joining from Tottenham , Kane has exceeded expectations in the Bundesliga, quickly establishing himself as the focal point of Bayern’s attack.

His goalscoring consistency, leadership qualities, and ability to link play have been central to Bayern’s domestic dominance and their continued ambitions in European competition.

There is a chance that Kane could eventually go back to England, but it seems like he is set to send another two-to-three seasons in Germany.

LFC competing with Bayern for Diomande (Sport Bild’s Christian Falk)

Liverpool FC could challenge Bayern Munich for RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande per Sport Bild’s Christian Falk.

“Bayern Munich made one big deal last summer, which was Luis Diaz – and it’s working very well,” Falk said on his website. “A decision had been made to get an older, more complete player, and they bought him for a lot of money from Liverpool at €70m (£60.7m). The idea now is to get some competition on the left side with a younger player, which is why Yan Diomande (19) is one idea the club has on the shortlist. They also have Said El Mala of FC Köln. That’s the view – they want to do something in this position.”

Diomande can play both wings, but is far more productive as a right wing per Transfermarkt. Would that impact Bayern Munich’s interest?

Juve angling for Chiesa loan (Gazzetta dello Sport via ESPN)

Juventus could be looking to bring Federico Chiesa back on a loan from Liverpool. Interestingly, German Kevin Schade is also on Juve’s wish list:

Juventus want to sign winger Federico Chiesa on loan from Liverpool for the rest of the season, but are also interested in Brentford pair Kevin Schade and Mikkel Damsgaard plus Brighton & Hove Albion’s Simon Adingra.

Vinicius Jr. to Chelsea? (Fichajes via Sports Illustrated)

Some rumors are speculating that Chelsea is poised to make a big bid to Real Madrid for Vinícius Júnior, but that seems ludicrous at the moment:

Chelsea are set to offer a record bid for Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. The London club, which recently parted ways with their head coach Enzo Maresca, are willing to spend around $175 million (€150 million). If a bid does come in, it is set to test the Spanish club, as they are still unsure of the Brazilian’s future. Due to his contract situation.

It does not feel like Real Madrid is quite ready to give up on the Brazilian yet, despite his rumored unhappiness playing under head coach Xabi Alonso.

Barca eyeing Bastoni (Marca via ESPN)

FC Barcelona is seeking to bolster its backline and could be contemplating a future pursuit of Inter Milan stud center-back Alessandro Bastoni:

Barcelona have entered the race for Internazionale center back Alessandro Bastoni, but there are no open negotiations and a move depends on the Blaugrana’s financial situation.

Bastoni was rumored to be on Bayern Munich’s radar a couple of years ago, but nothing serious ever materialized.

Mainoo wants to stay with United (The Sun)

Ruben Amorim’s sacking at Manchester United could open the door for Kobbie Mainoo to give a breakthrough with the Red Devils another chance:

KOBBIE MAINOO is determined not to give up on his Manchester United career despite a bleak 13 months under Ruben Amorim.

Well-placed sources say the working relationship between Mainoo’s camp and Amorim was strained before the midfielder’s half-brother donned a ‘Free Kobbie Mainoo’ T-shirt at Old Trafford during the 4-4 draw with Bournemouth in early December.

Despite the friction between Mainoo and Amorim, those close to the 20-year-old United academy graduate say he is determined to revive his Old Trafford career.

With Amorim now out, Mainoo could have a fresh start.

If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…