Bayern Munich star flirts with Barcelona over potential move before Champions League clash

Joshua Kimmich was full of praise for Barcelona and their manager Hansi Flick, with the Bayern Munich star linked with a move to the Catalan giants.

The Germany international is out of contract at the end of the season and there will be no shortage of suitors if he does not sign a new deal in Bavaria.

The likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have all been linked with the versatile midfielder and defender, while Barcelona have also been touted with a move if he is available on a free transfer.

Bayern and Barca meet in the Champions League on Wednesday night at the Camp Nou and Kimmich was not afraid to talk up his opponents ahead of the match and knowing he is on their radar.

‘I’m not thinking about that,’ Kimmich said on whether he would consider a move to Barcelona. ‘But you should never rule anything out in life and also in football. Barcelona and Spain as a national team had a big impact.

‘Xavi Hernandez was my childhood role model, I always watched the games with Pep as a coach and the Tiki-Taka. They were a role model.’

On former Bayern boss Flick, who is now in charge of Barcelona, Kimmich added: ‘Hansi created a good spirit back then. He gave the players and everyone around us a lot of trust. Also at times when there were doubts, including we players in ourselves.

‘We then played spectacular football that we all loved. We created a dynamic, we believed in what sort of football we were playing. That was what that time was about.’

While the 29-year-old made it clear he was not ruling out a move, he also suggested that a stay at Bayern Munich beyond this season remains a possibility.

‘Everyone knows I’m in talks with the club,’ he said. ‘What I discuss with the club remains internal. I won’t talk about it in a press conference.’

Kimmich has remained an important player in the Bayern squad under new manager Vincent Kompany, starting all seven of their Bundesliga games so far this campaign and both of their Champions League matches.

Kompany made a giant step up to Bayern from Burnley over the summer and Kimmich was quickly impressed with how he works.

Speaking at the start of the season the German said of the Belgian: ‘He is very structured. You can see that it is important to him that he conveys content and that it reaches us. He is very, very motivated and puts the team spirit at the forefront.’

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