90min

Bayern Munich Lodge €25m Bid for Shakhtar Donetsk Full-Back Dodô

By Toby Cudworth

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​Bayern Munich have opened negotiations with Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk over a deal for €30m-rated full-back Dodô.

The 21-year-old has been at the club for two years, and is now a first team regular after the arrival of Luís Castro as manager.

Prior to joining Shakhtar, Dodô spent one season in his native Brazil, making 45 appearances for Coritiba as a teenager. Schalke 04 and Benfica were keen on snapping him up, but he opted to move to the Ukraine in a deal worth €2m.

A loan spell at Vitória de Guimarães followed, but it's his emergence at Shakhtar that has seemingly caught the eye of Bayern's hierarchy. ​Goal report that the two clubs have opened talks over a potential move to the Allianz Arena, claiming that a €25m offer has been made.

Shakhtar are thought to be holding out for closer to €30m, though the report - bizarrely - goes on to state that Dodô's contract actually expires this summer. That would suggest that Bayern are perhaps paying over the odds for the Brazilian, or could simply be a miscommunication with when his deal currently ends.

In any event, what can't be disputed is ​Bayern's need to freshen things up as they look to reassert their dominance in Germany after a difficult year or so under previous manager Niko Kovač.

The Bavarians did win a seventh consecutive Bundesliga crown under the Croatian boss, but were not at their all-conquering best - only wrapping up the title on the final day of the season, ahead of rivals Borussia Dortmund.

This season has seen Bayern relinquish their stranglehold over Germany's top tier, and Die Roten currently find themselves third in the table, four points behind surprise table toppers RB Leipzig.

Kovač has been sacked as a result, handing the reins over to Hans Dieter-Flick - whose appointment as interim manager has been extended until the end of the season.

A turnover of players, sparked by the departures of club legends Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery in the summer, could now lead to Dodô - whose arrival could potentially free up Joshua Kimmich to regularly play in central midfield.