Arsenal could secure a huge advantage over Manchester City in next season's Premier League title race by hijacking a move for Joshua Kimmich. The 28-year-old midfielder has been heavily linked with a move to the Etihad Stadium lately as Pep Guardiola looks to replace the departing Ilkay Gundogan.
According to the Mirror, the Premier League champions will propose a swap deal to Bayern Munich which would see them keep Joao Cancelo in exchange for Joshua Kimmich. The report states that Guardiola is 'adamant' the Portugal international is no longer part of his plans after disrupting the dressing room following his return from the World Cup in December.
If City were to wrap up a deal for the Bayern star then he'd likely be operated as a holding midfielder in addition to a handful of appearances at right-back. While Guardiola may be keen to reunite with Kimmich, Marca have claimed that Arsenal, Liverpool and Barcelona are all eager to claim his services too.
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Kimmich, who sees his contract at the Allianz Arena expire in 2025, has featured 32 times for Thomas Tuchel's side in the Bundesliga this season, directly contributing towards 11 goals from holding midfield. Despite his impressive performances, Borussia Dortmund look well-positioned to clinch the German top-flight title.
With one game to spare, Bayern are two points behind their rivals. Kimmich's side have a far superior goal difference so they must beat Koln and hope that Dortmund either lose or draw against Mainz.
Nevertheless, in an interview with the Daily Mail in 2019, Kimmich revealed how much of an influence Guardiola has had on his career. The £43.5million-rated German joined Bayern during the Spaniard's reign in 2015 where he was handed his breakthrough in the Bundesliga.
"I was 20 years old playing in the second division," said Kimmich. "I was like, 'Why do they want to get me when they can have every player in the world?' So it was a bit strange for me. But I knew I had this great opportunity.
"I played different positions. With Pep, it's really important to know where team-mates are in every moment and also where the opponents are. So you learn and get another feeling of the space.
"You know every time you get the ball I can pass it to this player and this player. You know where your team-mates are, in which space. And so you think a bit different about the whole game of football."
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