Former Man United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that Bayern are eyeing Stones thanks to his relationship with Vincent Kompany.
Man City have no plans to renew Stones’ contract as things stand amid concerns about his fitness, but the Bundesliga champions are willing to take the gamble.
“Bayern Munich will be working on a deal for Stones, I expect,” Brown told Football Insider. “They want a new centre-back in the summer, they thought it was going to be Marc Guehi but City beat them to him, so who else is available? Stones stands out as the clear contender when you look at who’s available for free, and they’ll want to make progress towards an agreement when his contract runs out.
“He’s an England international and when he’s fit he’s a top-line player, and the Bundesliga is less demanding physically than the Premier League. Plus, Vincent Kompany knows him well after they played together at City. There are obvious concerns about his fitness, he hasn’t been fit to play for City when they’ve had major problems at the back, so it’s difficult to assess his position. He only plays about 20 games per season at the moment and that’s not good enough for any top side. But if Bayern Munich feel they can manage his issues better than City have, and think they can get the best out of him, then it could be a good move for them.”