We’re still over two months away from the January transfer window opening up, but the rumour mill is starting to heat up. Bayern Munich, being one of the premier clubs in Europe is always well represented when it comes to transfer speculation, and this morning they’ve been linked with a familiar name.
During the summer transfer window, Trevor Chalobah was linked with a move to Munich, but the transfer never materialised after Bayern spent big on South Korean defender Kim Min-jae.
Chalobah is well known to current Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel, who managed him while at Chelsea, but recent reports have indicated that Die Roten was unlikely to make a move for Chalobah in the January transfer window, despite him being identified as the perfect replacement for Benjamin Pavard who left Bayern for Inter Milan in the final week of the summer transfer window.
Chalobah and Chelsea expected to part ways during the January transfer window
The tall central defender has been sidelined since the start of August and is yet to make an appearance for the West London club, but according to Fabrizio Romano (via BILD) the two sides are expecting to part ways.
In that same report, it’s mentioned that Bayern maintain an interest in the player, along with several other clubs around Europe.
After the transfer of Chalobah to Bavaria collapsed, Nottingham Forrest attempted to sign the young English defender, but a deal couldn’t be agreed. The fee at the time was reportedly €50 million, but it’s now been reported that he could be available for €30 million instead.
Defensive midfield remains the priority for Bayern in the January transfer window, but the recent injuries to several key defenders have highlighted the need to strengthen the backline.
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As of now, Bayern have just two senior centre-halves available for selection in Kim Min-jae and Matthijs de Ligt, who’s only just returning from his own injury. Against Preussen Munster in the DFB-Pokal, Bayern were forced to play right-back Noussair Mazraoui and central midfielder Leon Goretzka in the heart of the defense, but I doubt Tuchel would be happy if he was forced to play either in a key Bundesliga or Champions League tie.
It remains to be seen if Bayern management will sign off on a transfer for Chalobah, but Die Roten could potentially return with another loan bid, inserting an obligation to purchase if certain criteria are met. That way they can spread the cost of signing a central defender and the inevitable reinforcement of a defensive midfielder.