Arsenal and Man United battling for Bayern Munich star who is available for free

Arsenal and Manchester United are set to battle it out for the signing of Leroy Sane from Bayern Munich.

Sane has struggled for game time at Bayern this season, starting just twice across all competitions. He has made 11 appearances in total - nine off the bench - scoring three times in the process. That isn't a bad total for someone who has played just 386 minutes of first-team football in 2024/25.

It has increased speculation over Sane's future, with his contract set to run out at the end of the season. The 28-year-old, who joined Bayern from Manchester City four years ago, could depart the Bundesliga side next summer and he is not expected to be short of options should he leave.

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According to Bild, Arsenal and United are about to battle it out for Sane. The former Schalke winger appears to be nearing a return to England and the Premier League duo are both looking to take advantage of his contract situation, with Sane on course to come a free agent when his deal expires.

It's understood that Sane has not held negotiations with Bayern about an extension is likely to be forced into a 25 per cent pay cut from £16.6million to £12.4m if he wants to stay. Sane is not the only player facing a salary decrease as Bayern look to cut costs and save some cash on player wages.

Sane left Man City in 2020 after a successful four-year spell at the Etihad Stadium which saw him lift two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups. He made 135 appearances for City, scoring 39 goals. Back in 2019, Pep Guardiola labelled Sane as the best in the world in his position.

"Playing in the middle he can do it," Guardiola said at the time. "But I think he’s better out wide. I’m not saying he can’t (play in middle) but at the moment we have better players to do that job. But Leroy is best playing in the world out wide. I’d prefer to use him where he is strongest, he’s an incredible player."