Champions League holders Bayern Munich have reportedly opened talks with Norwich City for Max Aarons.
The German champions are long-held admirers of the 21-year-old, and Sky Sports are reporting that they are ready to act on that interest and begin work on a deal to bring the right-back to the Allianz Arena.
Stuart Webber revealed last week that City had rejected an offer for Aarons from an unnamed overseas club in January, just a few months after Barcelona made a loan bid for the England U21 international.
The Spanish giants eventually elected to sign Sergino Dest from Ajax, meaning Aarons stayed at Carrow Road. He has featured in every game for City in the Championship this season.
The report states that the Canaries would prefer to conclude discussions in the summer as they focus on achieving promotion back to the Premier League. City have set a price of £35million for their academy graduate with Bayern beginning preliminary negotiations via an intermediary, Sky suggest.
Manchester United have also reportedly scouted Aarons extensively in recent weeks as they look to bolster their right-back positions ahead of next season.
Aarons' conduct throughout the season has been exemplary despite the interest in him during both transfer windows. City aren't a club to stand in the way of their young talent should a deal be struck that is right for all parties. Bayern are a European superpower and won't be paying a pittance for a right-back regarded as one of the best in the country.
Speaking about the interest in City's stars in January, Webber quashed talk of Emi Buendia's potential move to Arsenal and said Norwich spoke to Aarons before rejecting the offer they received.
“The only interest was in Max. No other players," he said. "That was ironic as it was the only one that didn’t get out in the press. I spoke to him about that. We are always honest if there is interest and what does that mean for the club and him as an individual.
"We decided not to act on that interest, with Max’s blessing I must add, because it was from abroad and wouldn’t have been quite right for him and definitely wasn’t right for us at that time. It was about keeping the squad together.
“Max, Todd (Cantwell) and Emi want to crack on and help this club be promoted. I don’t think moving in January was a topic for them. It might be different if we were 15th in the Championship and they had Premier League offers. We have stuck by the players, they have stuck with us so let’s finish the job.”
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