Bayern Munich Pursue Anthony Gordon Amid Nübel's Key Role
Bayern Munich want Anthony Gordon. Badly.
According to Bild, the Bundesliga giants have made the Newcastle United winger a priority target but are wrestling with one major problem: cash. Newcastle’s valuation is high, Bayern’s immediate liquidity is not, and so the German champions are reaching for an old transfer-market tool — the makeweight.
That role is set to fall to Alexander Nübel.
The goalkeeper has just completed an impressive loan spell at Stuttgart and is due back at the Allianz Arena this summer, tied to Bayern until June 2030. On paper, that looks like long-term commitment. In reality, the door is closing on him in Munich.
Manuel Neuer is still entrenched as No 1. Jonas Urbig and Sven Ulreich are locked in behind him. Nübel’s path is blocked.
Bayern sporting director Christoph Freund did not bother to disguise it. “We've had discussions with his management and Alex is also aware of our plans. We're heading into next season with this trio of goalkeepers; that's the plan,” he said, making it clear Nübel is surplus to requirements.
That clarity turns Nübel into leverage.
Newcastle, braced for Nick Pope’s likely departure, are actively hunting a new goalkeeper. They need a high-level replacement quickly, and a 29-year-old German with Bundesliga pedigree suddenly looks like an attractive solution. Bayern know it, and are ready to fold Nübel into a package for Gordon in an attempt to drive down the cash component of any deal.
The pressure to reinforce in attack is no secret in Munich either. Before Bayern’s DFB Cup final win against Stuttgart in Berlin, sporting director Max Eberl laid out the club’s stance on their summer business.
“We agree that we will sign an attacking player if he is affordable,” Eberl said at a Bild event. “We had a very good discussion and hope that we can make progress.”
The message was unmistakable: Bayern want an attacking upgrade, and they will move if the numbers work. Gordon fits the profile. The question is whether Newcastle are prepared to sacrifice one of their most dynamic forwards to solve a problem at the other end of the pitch.
Complicating everything is the calendar.
Nübel is currently away with Germany at the World Cup in North America, his future parked while he focuses on the national team. Any in-depth negotiations around his role in a swap are likely to be slow, with agents, clubs and player all juggling tournament commitments.
On Tyneside, the recruitment work has not stopped. Newcastle are also looking at younger alternatives, including Lens goalkeeper Robin Risser, as they weigh up whether to accept Bayern’s proposal or push down a different path. That parallel search only adds another layer of tension to talks.
For Eddie Howe, the stakes are obvious. He needs an immediate, elite upgrade in goal to keep Newcastle’s defensive standards high. He also knows how much Gordon gives his side in transition, energy and end product. Losing that edge on the wing to fix the situation in goal would reshape the team’s identity.
So Newcastle’s hierarchy face a brutal decision: take the package, bank Nübel and the cash, and let Gordon walk into the Allianz Arena — or hold their nerve and risk Bayern looking elsewhere.
The World Cup will end, the market will accelerate, and at some point this summer someone will blink. The only unknown is whether it happens in Munich or on Tyneside.
