What reliable journo just heard about Liverpool & Man Utd transfer tug of war

Manchester United could invite yet another Bayern Munich star to their ranks this summer.

The Red Devils had a truly disappointing 2024/25 campaign by all accounts. Ruben Amorim’s men slumped to a 15th-place finish in the Premier League and obliterated their worst points total in the competition.

Now, it seems that United are considering bolstering their backline this summer in an attempt to improve their fortunes in time for the next season.

Man Utd and Liverpool reportedly like Kim Min-jae

If reports are to be believed, both Manchester United and Arne Slot’s Liverpool have their eyes on Kim Min-jae.

That’s great news for FC Bayern and the Premier League, as the Bavarian giants can already imagine life without the South Korean centre-back.

The former Napoli man has struggled to assert himself in Munich since his €50m [£43m] move in 2023. With Jonathan Tah having arrived from Bayer Leverkusen this summer, the 28-year-old’s future in the Bundesliga doesn’t look promising.

At the time of writing, however, Christian Falk reports that Bayern Munich have still yet to receive an offer for Min-jae.

“No decision has yet been made on Kim Min-jae’s future. There have also been no negotiations with the player’s side,” the head of sport at BILD exclusively informed CaughtOffside.

“But, there is interest from Saudi Arabia. Kim has not ruled it out. However, we are still waiting to see whether Liverpool and Manchester United become concrete. There are also rumours that the two Premier League clubs are interested.

“The fact is: FC Bayern can imagine a sale. However, there is still no offer for the defender.”

Will Bayern sell to the Premier League?

Ultimately, it’s going to come down to who is prepared to cough up the cash. If the Saudi Pro League intends to escalate its interest, Premier League clubs will likely find themselves at a disadvantage on wages.

More to the point, it remains to be seen whether Manchester United would be keen to expand their existing roster of Bayern expats.

Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui have hardly set tongues wagging at Old Trafford in 2024/25. The pair respectively picked up 6.91/10 and 6.97/10 ratings (courtesy of Sofascore) for their contributions in the Premier League this season.

Kim Min-jae does have comparatively more impressive numbers when it comes to his use of the ball. However, this is to be expected in a side like Bayern that tends to dominate games in the Bundesliga.

* Stats courtesy of Sofascore and FBref (for the 2024/25 season/last 365 days)

Manchester United need goals

There’s a point to be made – as terrible as United were to watch last term – that there is a far greater need for offensive reinforcements.

Conceding 54 goals in the Premier League won’t get Amorim’s outfit close to the title, but it’s still possible to challenge for European spots – provided they improve on 44 goals scored.

Evidently, Jason Wilcox would agree, given the club have already secured the signing of Matheus Cunha from Wolves. Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo is also heavily linked with a move.

So, it remains to be seen whether Manchester United will capitalise on the opportunity to sign Kim Min-jae.

Liverpool don’t need Kim Min-jae

It comes down to this: there’s no place in Liverpool’s starting-XI for a centre-back when both Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate are fit.

That’s not to say the Reds couldn’t do with a backup option coming in this summer.

Joe Gomez’s injury issues mean the Englishman can’t be relied upon for availability throughout the league season.

After a difficult 2024/25 campaign, it looks like Jarell Quansah would benefit from some regular first-team football on loan.

Despite that, however, we just can’t see a world in which Kim Min-jae is prepared to accept a bit-part role behind the starting centre-back duo.

Christian Falk’s Fact Files – Jack Grealish to the Bundesliga?

The post What reliable journo just heard about Liverpool & Man Utd transfer tug of war appeared first on CaughtOffside.