Young Hamburg striker Jann-Fiete Arp and Ajax center-back Matthijs de Ligt are on Bayern Munich’s radar as the club prepares for its future.
Bayern Munich is home to some of the most exciting young talents in all of Europe. Players such as Joshua Kimmich, Kingsley Coman and Niklas Sule ensure that the club is prepared for the next several years.
This is largely due to a recent change of emphasis from the club’s higher-ups. Bayern is returning to a focus on youth development at the club, after straying away from that approach.
This explains why two of Europe’s hottest young players have been earmarked as potential future stars at Bayern Munich. According to Bild‘s Christian Falk, Bayern Munich are interested in both Jann-Fiete Arp and Matthijs de Ligt.
De Light und Arp stehen auf der @FCBayern Liste für die Zukunft
— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) April 23, 2018
This isn’t the first time either Arp or de Ligt have been linked with a move to the Bavarian capital. With such talent and potential as they have shown, though, it’d be hard to avoid links with any of Europe’s top clubs.
However, for Falk to suggest both youngsters are on Bayern’s list all but confirms that there is absolutely genuine interest from the Bavarians in the pair.
Arp provides a unique blend between a classic center-forward and the modern striker. His playing style is most often compared to Tottenham’s star striker Harry Kane, though he’s not too unlike Bayern’s own Robert Lewandowski. He excels at finishing off attacking moves, but he’s good enough with his feet to drop back and contribute to the build-up.
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Sportbild recently wrote that Bayern would sign Arp should Hamburg get relegated at the end of this season. Although they are fighting admirably, it does seem that demotion is inevitable for the Hamburgers this season.
Matthijs de Ligt, meanwhile, has been sensational for Ajax this season. The 18-year-old has not only been a mainstay of the Dutch giants’ squad but one of their best players. He’s an undeniable talent, perhaps even more obviously so than Arp.
The thought of a future partnership between him and Sule is almost too much to handle. Throw in Lukas Mai, who seems to be a promising talent of his own, and you’re looking at (what should be) quite the formidable trio of central defenders once Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels call it quits.
It’s likely that both players, if purchased by Bayern Munich this summer, would immediately go out on loan for a season or two. This is similar to what the club did with Serge Gnabry last summer, and it seems to have worked wonders for the young forward.
Next: Bayern Munich have all the right pieces to replace injured Arturo Vidal
Both Arp and de Ligt seem like no-brainer moves for the Bayern board. After recently being burned by Renato Sanches, they might be a bit reluctant to jump at the “next big thing.” But that’s simply the risk you take with young players. And there’s still a chance for Sanches at Bayern anyway. In fact, one could argue his lack of success at the club is still mostly down to the way he’s been handled. But that’s another argument for another time.