The ballyhooed signing of Bayern Munich’s summer 2022 transfer window, Sadio Mané from Liverpool FC, has had a nightmare of a first season in Bavaria. Injuries, flagging production, and an off-field incident have marred what had been a bright and promising start. Now, after just one season, Mané is one of the first names touted for an exit.
But will he? The Senegalese forward reportedly wants to stay and fight for his spot in Thomas Tuchel’s side next season, and it’s not clear that Bayern will be able to easily offload a high earner. However, given his long-term success in the Premier League, English clubs are seeing their names frequently linked on the rumor mill.
The latest? Newcastle United, as reported by Sky Sports journalist Florian Plettenberg (via @iMiaSanMia). The Magpies have just secured qualification to the Champions League, and are still still on the up-and-up following a 2021 takeover driven by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.
Mané has plenty of Champions League experience, and that’s the sort of profile a squad like Newcastle might need now — or so the thinking goes. After a transfer balance sheet nearly €200M in the red last summer, how far will the Magpies go to secure Mané, who was sold to Bayern for €32M plus bonuses? Will it even be a problem for them?
Plettenberg’s report indicates that the interest is just that for now — interest. But Bayern, who are still searching for a striker after Mané failed to adequately replace Robert Lewandowski last summer, might just take comfort in the possibility that they can immediately recoup what looks so far like a failed investment.
