Brilliant wildcard Arsenal transfer RUINED by Tuchel's Bayern exit

Tom Weber

Updated: 17 May 2024 14:04 BST
4 min read

Mikel Arteta, Thomas Tuchel, Arsenal — © IMAGO

The news that Thomas Tuchel will depart Bayern Munich at the end of the season (for real this time) will have been brilliantly received by Joshua Kimmich.

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To say that the Bayern Munich star's relationship is frosty would be an understatement. Tuchel ignited a veritable feud behind the scenes even before the Bundesliga season kicked off when he publically announced that he wanted a new defensive midfielder for his side, insisting that Kimmich was not cut out for that role.

As the season progressed, the 29-year-old was moved back into the right-back role he had played in his younger years, a position he very much does not like to play. This was also due to Kimmich's performance levels suffering a significant decline in the early stages of the season.

With the veteran out of contract in 2025, question marks have been hanging over his head since last year and the fact that he didn't have a great start to the season has made Bayern reluctant to accede to his hefty wage demands despite his form significantly improving lately.

In February, tensions between Kimmich and Tuchel boiled over when the player got into a war of words with assistant coach Zsolt Low after being substituted in a loss to relegation-battlers Bochum, with the two having to be separated by captain Manuel Neuer.

Kimmich to Arsenal off?

The news that Tuchel would depart Bayern at the end of the season would have made Kimmich quite happy, it is fair to assume. The more recent talk about a spectacular U-turn will likely have had the opposite effect.

However, the initial decision from February still stands, as officially confirmed by Tuchel. The German will leave this summer and this will massively influence Kimmich's decision over whether to sign a new deal or depart.

The player has no shortage of suitors. Barcelona and PSG hold a concrete interest according to Sky Germany, while FootballTransfers exclusively revealed in early April that Arsenal are keen on the versatile player.

According to Bayern director Max Eberl, Kimmich wants clarity over who will be in charge of Bayern before making a decision, but final confirmation of Tuchel's exit likely means that he is now leaning towards an extension. Kimmich is settled in Bavaria and will only leave if the offer on the table from another club is very attractive and talks with Bayern completely collapse.

A move to Arsenal would have made sense from the Gunners' point of view. Mikel Arteta is looking to add another midfielder who would allow him to unleash Declan Rice in a number eight role full-time and someone like Kimmich, despite perhaps being a bit on the older side, would have added an awful lot to Arsenal's team.

The player would have been open to a move too, with the north London club one of just five sides Kimmich would have any interest in signing for at this stage of his career. As things stand, however, it is difficult to imagine that the German will be playing at the Emirates next term.