Barcelona: Xavi expects Kimmich to demand Bayern exit

The Bayern Munich star has emerged as a transfer target for Barcelona.

Xavi Hernandez has appeared to confirm Barcelona’s interest in signing Joshua Kimmich from Bayern Munich.

Kimmich has developed into a cornerstone of Bayern’s squad since breaking into their senior squad under Pep Guardiola. As Bayern’s planned future captain, Kimmich rarely gets linked with other clubs.

However, Barca have shown interest in signing the 28-year-old this summer. Speaking about the German international, Xavi compared Kimmich’s situation to that of Robert Lewandowski, who left Bayern for Barcelona last summer.

“I talked to him in Qatar, he said he was a fan of me,” Xavi said on Thursday.

“He is under contract with Bayern so it depends on him. Look at Lewy for example, he wanted to come.”

Bayern will most likely reject any initial offer from Barcelona to sign Kimmich. However, pressure from the midfielder could change the situation in Barca’s favour.

As Kimmich’s “role model”, Xavi could play a vital role in Barca’s hopes of adding him to their ranks.

“My role model was always Xavi Hernandez from Barcelona,” Kimmich told SportBild in 2021. “He was never the greatest, but had an eye for the game, passing, technique. He was always trying to put others in the limelight.

“That impressed me, that’s what I want to orient myself towards. I met Xavi once at the training camp in Doha in 2019, that was a really cool moment!”