Daily Schmankerl: Bayern Munich went hard after Erling Haaland before Manchester City move; Tottenham Hotspur chasing Serge Gnabry; FC Barcelona targets Liverpool’s Sadio Mane; Chelsea to raid RB Leipzig; and MORE!

According to a report from Bild, Bayern Munich chased Borussia Dortmund star all the way until the bitter end when the Norwegian ultimately decided to join Manchester City:

There has finally been clarity since Tuesday: Bundesliga superstar Erling Haaland (21) is moving from Dortmund to Manchester City! The English club will pull the €75m release clause plus bonuses, previously announced the move.

BILD reveals: Bayern was still hoping for a Haaland commitment by the weekend! The German champions were much longer and more intense on Haaland than everyone thought. It was only last weekend that the Haaland side was said to have given the final rejection to Bavaria’s sports director Hasan Salihamidzic (45)! In addition, according to BILD information, there was always an intensive exchange between Bayern and Haaland. But in the end it was rejected.

Here me out…the timing does make sense based on previous reports. Over the weekend, Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidzic commented that his club was not going to be the one ink Haaland, but there was also the infamous meeting at Salihamidzic’s house last month.

It does seem that there was at least some serious discussion about a move, but ultimately, the timing just was not right. Robert Lewandowski will spend at least one more season in Bavaria and man the “9” spot:

Bayern still very hot for Haaland until the end – Bayern’s super striker Robert Lewandowski (33) should not like that at all. The wooing for the Dortmund star and the extremely hesitant behavior at the same time when it came to the Pole’s contract extension at Bayern bothered him massively. One of the main reasons why Lewandowski no longer feels fully valued at Bayern and would like to leave the club this summer despite the contract until 2023. If the dream club Barcelona gets serious, it will be exciting to see if Bayern really stick to their no to the Lewandowski comes out…

Tottenham Hotspur could be preparing to make a big offer for Serge Gnabry:

Tottenham Hotspur have set their sights on a dream signing in Bayern Munich star Serge Gnabry this summer, according to reports. The sensational Bundesliga forward, out of contract in 2023, has been at the center of exit reports recently as his club still fail to agree terms over an extension.

Bayern, as a result, are currently under some pressure and face the possibility of having to sell him for a profit in the next transfer window while they still can. Gnabry has no shortage of Premier League suitors, including Spurs, with manager Antonio Conte personally holding a serious interest in the former Arsenal ace. According to a report by The Daily Star, Conte is ‘pushing’ transfer chief Fabio Paratici and the north Londoners to ‘table a cut-price deal’ for Bayern’s star given his contract status.

Bayern Munich will close out its season with a match against Wolfsburg. Surely, the Bavarians will be looking to get three points and finish off a very good campaign — even if it only yielded one trophy.

Here is what we have on tap for the final Preview Show of the season:

• A look at where each team is in the table and the recent form of each squad.
• A glance at the talent on the Wolfsburg roster and some thought on why next season will probably be make or break for Florian Kohfeldt.
• A guess on Julian Nagelsmann’s formation and lineup. With several players banged up or unavailable, we could get a strong dose of the squad’s regulars for at least the first 60 minutes of the match.
• A prediction on the match.

The links between Bayern Munich and Liverpool star Sadio Mane have been widely refuted and Mane’s age (see below) could be a primary issue for that. Regardless, FC Barcelona could be a club that is a more realistic option for the star forward. The feeling here, however, is that he will end up inking a deal with Liverpool either way:

Liverpool are reportedly set to reopen contract talks with Sadio Mane, who is attracting strong interest from Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

According to GOAL, Liverpool are planning to restart negotiations over a new contract with superstar forward Sadio Mane, who has emerged as a transfer target for Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Take a look below to see why Mane-to-Bayern Munich probably will not happen.

According to Sport1’s Kerry Hau, Liverpool’s Sadio Mane is not really an option for Bayern Munich moving forward because he is 30-years-old.

Instead, Bayern Munich would prefer to retain Serge Gnabry and extend his deal but it is proving difficult. Hau listed the chance of Gnabry staying at Bayern Munich as 50/50, but there will be more negotiations.

As previously reported, Gnabry’s salary requirement and his desire for a role in a central attacking position remain an issue. The club, however, will not set a deadline for when it needs to get a deal done. Should Gnabry opt to leave, RB Leipzig’s Christopher Nkunku and Ajax’s Antony could be options:

It’s a little late but we got one recorded! Bayern Munich have played their penultimate game of the season and the transfer rumors are in full swing. We have news about Serge Gnabry, Noussair Mazraoui, Ryan Gravenberch, and the surprise news that Liverpool’s Sadio Mane is Brazzo’s dream target for this summer (yeah right). Plenty to talk about, so give it a listen!

In this episode, Samrin and INNN discuss:

• A review of Bayern Munich’s draw to Stuttgart, because we couldn’t do one on Sunday because of scheduling conflicts.
• Nagelsmann’s reluctance to use younger and fringe players since clinching the title.
• Why fans should cut Tanguy Nianzou some slack.
• How Niklas Sule leaving puts Bayern’s long term defensive planning into flux.
• Switching gears to transfers — does the Sadio Mane rumor make any sense?
• Why it would be better for Nagelsmann to not get any big expensive signings this summer.
• Parallels between Kovac, Ancelotti, and Nagelsmann.
• An unscheduled interruption — thanks Zoom!
• INNN defends Nagelsmann for a second (very rare!).
• One final announcement for our regular listeners.

Even though Bayern Munich missed out on Haaland this time around, his rumored release clause could make him attainable in the future:

Poker dragged on for a long time, but it is now clear that Manchester City won the race for Erling Haaland. Real Madrid was also repeatedly traded as a possible buyer, but now the Spanish radio station Cadena SER wants to know why the royals had withdrawn from the bid for the BVB striker. Accordingly, Haaland’s deceased advisor Mino Raiola wanted to anchor a release clause of 150 million euros in Haaland’s contract.

The clause should come into play from the second year, giving the Norwegian a realistic chance of a move if things don’t go well for Los Blancos. However, Real President Florentino Perez vehemently rejected the clause. He does not want to make such a costly investment, with the risk that Haaland can leave the club for 150 million euros in the second year. (REPORT: Haaland medical check apparently through)

In Spain, according to labor law, it is compulsory to be able to change employers at any time. That’s why in Spain all players have a release clause. The clubs usually set the clauses high so that they are not pulled and a transfer fee has to be negotiated.

Will there be anyone left at RB Leipzig after this summer? Chelsea FC boss Thomas Tuchel is eyeing up a couple of players:

The signing of Philippe Coutinho at FC Barcelona will be rolled for ages, I guess. Regardless, the former Bayern Munich midfielder is reportedly on his way to Aston Villa for a chance at a fresh start: