Favourite named as Arsenal, Man City, Real Madrid and Barcelona converge on mammoth 2025 transfer

Steve Pearson 11 Sep 2024 3:31 PM

Bayern Munich attacker Jamal Musiala, Arsenal, Man City badges

Arsenal, Manchester City, Barcelona and Real Madrid are all chasing a blockbuster move in 2025 for Bayern Munich ace Jamal Musiala, and a report has named which team is currently the favourite.

Musiala is already one of world football’s premier attackers despite being aged just 21. The versatile Bayern superstar bagged 20 goal contributions last term and is arguably Germany’s most influential player at international level. Indeed, Musiala finished joint-top scorer at Euro 2024 with three goals.

Musiala is contracted to Bayern Munich until 2026 and the club’s hope is he extends his stay for the long haul.

Club president Herbert Hainer emphasised on Monday how Musiala can become Bayern’s new version of club legend Thomas Muller.

“Of course, we want to try everything to keep him for the long term,” Hainer said during the presentation of the Bayern women’s documentary in the Allianz Arena (as quoted by Sky Germany).

“In my opinion, he could easily become the second Thomas Muller at Bayern and play here for the next 20 years.”

But according to Spanish outlet Fichajes, no fewer than four gigantic clubs are ready to pluck Musiala out of Bavaria next summer.

Premier League duo Arsenal and Man City along with LaLiga pair Real Madrid and Barcelona are all reportedly ‘looking to sign’ Musiala in 2025.

At that point – and assuming a fresh contract hasn’t been agreed – Musiala would have just a single season remaining on his deal.

Of the interested quartet, Fichajes claimed Pep Guardiola’s Man City ‘appears to be leading the race.’

How much a transfer would cost is not year clear and would change depending on a number of factors including how many clubs bid, how determined Bayern are to retain the player and how long Musiala has left on his contract.

But to give a rough figure, online outlet Transfermarkt currently value Musiala at a whopping €130m (£109.7m / $143.3m).

Bayern desperate to retain Jamal Musiala

Of course, Bayern will fight tooth and nail to retain a player who could be the talisman of their team for the next decade and beyond.

Speaking to BILD, Bayern director Max Eberl recently confirmed a fresh round of talks over a contract extension will take place soon.

“We are always in contact, further discussions will follow,” said Eberl. “He should become a face of FC Bayern in the future.

“His journey at FC Bayern is far from over. He wants to win titles, and that is exactly what we want too.”

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has also provided his take on what’s in store for Musiala.

Speaking to Caught Offside, Romano confirmed negotiations over a new deal are already underway and Bayern are confident they’ll thrash out an agreement.

However, the trusted reporter stressed that by no means is Musiala staying at Bayern a certainty.

“Another top German talent to watch remains Jamal Musiala, with Bayern speaking publicly about wanting him to sign a new contract and stay with the club for the long term,” reported Romano.

“For now, however, no decision has been made, it’s a negotiation. Nothing has changed for now, there have been no significant developments.

“Of course Bayern are confident, they want Musiala to stay and his contact is a really important topic for the board, they simply can’t fail on this mission. Negotiations are ongoing, but it’s too early to say how it will finish.”

2025 will be decisive year for Bayern Munich

If Bayern fail to tie Musiala down to fresh terms, the club will be faced with an agonising decision in the 2025 summer window if and when giant bids are tabled.

Failure to cash in while they still can could result in the club’s most valuable player leaving for nothing a year later.

Furthermore, left-back Alphonso Davies – whose contract expires in 2025 – looks on course to join Real Madrid as a free agent and will need to be replaced.

Elsewhere, established stars Manuel Neuer, Joshua Kimmich, Leroy Sane and Thomas Muller are all off contract in 2025.

BILD reported over the summer that Bayern expect Neuer and Muller to retire when their existing deals expire. As with Davies, high profile replacements must be sought.

How Musiala compares to Arsenal, Man City playmakers

Musiala is equally adept at playing as an attacking midfielder or on either flank.

Indeed, he lined up as a No 10 more often than not for Bayern last season, though played three times on the right wing for Germany at Euro 2024 and twice on the left wing.

Musiala could form a high-powered midfield three at the Emirates if deployed as the left-sided No 8 in Mikel Arteta’s midfield three. Declan Rice would hold, with captain Martin Odegaard on the right of the trio.

At the Etihad, meanwhile, Fichajes strongly suggested Musiala would be viewed as the long-term successor to Kevin De Bruyne who turns 34 next summer.

When comparing Musiala to Arsenal and Man City’s most creative players based on their key metrics last season, the Bayern ace matches up reasonably well to two of the Premier League’s best.