Manchester United's hopes of landing Leon Goretzka hang in the balance as the midfielder wants to defy Bayern's openess to cash in and stay and fight for his place.

How many goals has Leon Goretzka scored for Bayern Munich?

The 28-year-old has been with current club Bayern Munich for five seasons now and has so far accumulated 124 Bundesliga appearances for the Bavarians, bagging 25 goals and 19 assists in the league along the way for them.

Despite being a midfielder then, he is often able to hit the back of the net and tee up his teammates. However, his rates have dipped recently despite a slight rise in gametime. In 2022/23, he managed 27 Bundesliga games in total but only three goals and two assists. It marks his worst goal contribution total since he arrived at the Allianz Arena – with that production rate getting steadily worse each campaign.

He has though, proven his ability as a final third thread in the past. In 2021/22 for example, he managed 2.9 shots per 90 on average – which was the tenth best rate in the entire division. It shows the German's ability to drive forward and to test the goalkeeper at will with his shooting prowess. He also ranked in the top ten for goal-creating actions per 90 in the two seasons prior to that. Again, it shows he is constantly a threat to opposition defences and can carve them open with his link-up play.

Are Manchester United signing Leon Goretzka?

Despite this, Goretzka – who stands at a towering 6 foot 2 – has been available on a deal this summer as Bayern look to raise funds for their own incomings. Reports had suggested that he would be allowed to leave and that had led to interest from the Premier League, as well as other divisions.

Manchester United and Liverpool had been named as two teams who were keeping an eye on the situation, with both potentially looking to try and seal a transfer for the 28-year-old during the window.

Now though, according to a report from 90Min, the Bayern star could be set to stay on in Germany. Despite their desire to raise funds and clear some room in the squad, Goretzka himself is keen to stay on with the Bundesliga side and could now ward off any potential interest in his services.

It also reaffirms that United had been keen to try and bring him to England and had been keeping tabs on the situation with him at Bayern. However, they won't launch a transfer bid for him in the knowledge that he now wants to stay at the Allianz Arena beyond this summer.

Goretzka remains a talent, even if his goal contribution numbers have nosedived. His ability away from simply assists and goalscoring has been showcased by his underlying stats and performances. He regularly plays a part in a Bayern side that consistently wins Bundesliga titles and challenges in Europe and would be a shrewd addition to any team then – but it doesn't look as if it will be Man United this summer.