The distinguished 28-year-old is apparently available for transfer this summer.
Liverpool’s sporting director Jorg Schmadtke must be on red alert following recent news claiming that Bayern Munich star Joshua Kimmich is no longer deemed untouchable by the German champions’ hierarchy.
What’s the latest on Joshua Kimmich to Liverpool?
According to Spanish reports, Jurgen Klopp’s Reds are joined by Premier League rivals Manchester City and Manchester United in vying for Kimmich’s name, with just two years remaining on the phenom’s current deal at the Allianz Arena.
This follows revelations from German outlet Kicker (via Liverpool Echo) revealing that Bayern bosses would be “willing to talk” with suitors for the star, who has a Football Transfers value of £59m.
With Fabinho looking set to depart Anfield for Al Ittihad as part of the Saudi Arabian torrent that has sent shock waves through the footballing world, a replacement is needed and no touted name might be as apt as Kimmich.
Will Joshua Kimmich leave Bayern?
Kimmich has been a stalwart for the German giants – who won their 11th successive Bundesliga title on a frenetic closing day in May – and has forged 347 appearances across all competitions, scoring 40 goals and supplying 97 assists
To say he has enjoyed success with Die Roten would be something of an understatement, the 79-cap Germany captain has gleaned eight league titles, three DFB Pokals and the Champions League since making the switch from Stuttgart in 2015, and should he leave this summer, he would unequivocally depart a club legend.
With Liverpool now desperate to secure a new No. 6, Kimmich is surely the optimum man for the job – barring the complications arising from his £324k-per-week wage and rival competition from some of the Premier League’s biggest names.
Indeed, as per FBref, the dynamo ranks among the top 6% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 4% for shot-creating actions, the top 1% for progressive passes and the top 15% for interceptions.
Additionally, he averaged 2.4 tackles per game in the 22/23 Bundesliga, also winning 61% of his ground duels (Sofascore), and completed 90% of his passes, boasting all the attributes to be the glinted metronome that Klopp so dearly craves to ensure his side return to the very top of European football.
While competitive action is still several weeks away, the Anfield side looks to have successfully raided German football once this year, completing the £60m signing of Red Bull Leipzig’s Dominick Szoboszlai earlier this month, and could now repeat the feat with a further momentous midfield move.
The duo could unite to form one of European football’s most cohesive and devastating centres, with Kimmich’s deep-lying creativity running in tandem with Szoboszlai’s destructive and progressive nature from the No. 10 role.
Szoboszlai, aged 22, registered ten goals and 13 assists from 46 displays across the 22/23 campaign, finishing third in the league and retaining the DFB Pokal with Leipzig, thus earning praise as a “generational talent” by journalist Marcel Moeller.
As per FBref, the 32-cap Hungary captain ranks among the top 9% of attacking midfielders and wingers for shot-creating actions per 90, but more intriguingly ranks among the top 11% for blocks and the top 13% for clearances per 90, which illustrates his grit and determination in contributing effectively to the defensive efforts.
He’s a team player, and one who could return the favour when Kimmich picks him out with one of his defence-splitting balls by charging back into the defensive third to sweep away danger and inhibit opposing strikers in their attempts at bypassing Alisson’s goal.
And given that Bayern Munich’s star midfielder is truly “world-class”, as he has been hailed by former manager Julian Nagelsmann, it could be a move to pump quality of the highest calibre into a Liverpool side desperate to commence their renaissance after a testing term
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