Good source claims Manchester United have today opened negotiations to sign 29 year old

When it comes to Bayern Munich, there is probably no journalist with better connections than Christian Falk.

The Bild man has a record of exclusives from the Bundesliga club, whether that be related to transfers or interviews. There doesn’t seem anybody closer to the German club.

On Sunday evening, Falk sent out a tweet saying Manchester United have initiated talks to sign Jerome Boateng. The claim came just as the friendly between the two clubs, which Bayern won 1-0, was ending.

On Thursday, Bild reported Manchester United were playing ‘transfer poker’ to try and sign the 29 year old defender. The idea had been to offer Anthony Martial for the German international.

Bayern weren’t keen, and in a clear show of where the information had come from, Bild quoted Karl-Heinz Rummenigge as saying: “We have four outside forwards: Ribéry, Robben, Coman and Gnabry. And Davies also comes. You must not overdo it. That’s what some clubs do, but it’s a problem for the coach.”

There’s a more than good chance the claims have come from someone within Bayern Munich, but whether that makes it true is another matter.

Falk will not be playing games, this will not be a rumour grasped from thin air. Boateng is a central defender… and United are looking for one.

What perhaps should be kept in mind is that despite saying otherwise publicly, Bayern seem to have been repeatedly briefing their loyal media that a Boateng sale is possible this summer.

Maybe this is Bayern Munich starting negotiations, rather than Manchester United, and using the friendly as an opportunity.