Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel in talks with Declan Rice

Sky Germany report that Bayern Munich will increase their efforts to sign midfielder Declan Rice from West Ham this summer.

Rice, who is also attracting interest from Arsenal, is on Bayern’s radar, as they look to boost their midfield going forward.

Tuchel calls Rice

A phone call took place between Bayern head coach Thomas Tuchel and Rice in recent days and the 24-year-old is reportedly open to joining the Bundesliga champions, who lifted the German title on Saturday after Borussia Dortmund’s last-minute collapse.

The fee being reported for Hammers captain Rice is just below €100m. Midfielders Mateo Kovacic, Marco Verratti and Adrian Rabiot have all been linked with a move to the Allianz Arena.

Kimmich surprised

Bayern midfielder Joshua Kimmich criticised his club’s decision to sack Oliver Kahn and Hasan Salihamidžić just after the team were crowned Bundesliga champions at the weekend. “Of course, it comes as a surprise that it’s the day you win the German league title... I think they could have waited another two or three days.”

Despite the changes, the German club will continue working on strengthening their squad ahead of the new season. The new recruitment team includes Uli Hoeneß, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Tuchel, Jan-Christian Dreesen and CFO Dr. Michael Diederich.