Benjamin Pavard Hoping for 'Different Offers' amid Bayern, Barcelona Rumours

The agent of Stuttgart full-back Benjamin Pavard has said his client is hopeful of "different offers" amid links to Bayern Munich and Barcelona.

Pavard has also been linked to Italian side Napoli, and his representative, Joseph Mohan, spoke to CalcioNapoli24 (h/t Football Italia) to deny speculation that talks with the Partenopei are ongoing.

Mohan also didn't rule out his client staying put for the foreseeable future, saying: "We haven't talked to anyone from Napoli yet. Will he move in June? He could also stay at Stuttgart, although we hope different offers arrive in the coming months."

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

The 22-year-old has been strongly linked to Bayern and had to deny persistent rumours he had already agreed to a deal with the Bavarians last summer, per L'Equipe (via Mirror's Liam Prenderville).

According to those reports, Pavard had a personal agreement with Bayern to join in the summer of 2019.

The France international rose to fame during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, starring as one of the tournament's top breakout performers.

His best moment came against Argentina, when he scored a crucial goal that was later voted as the best of the World Cup:

A product of Lille's vaunted academy, he moved to Germany in 2016 and has been a regular for Stuttgart since. While the switch to the German second division was initially seen as an odd one, Pavard's progression has been swift at Stuttgart, and he's now in a position to seal a transfer to a top club.

Les Bleus used him as a right-back in Russia, but he has the size and strength to play as a centre-back as well, having spent the bulk of his minutes there in the Bundesliga.

Stuttgart are battling relegation and would of course prefer not to lose their star defender, but they may not have a choice. The club has admitted his contract contains a release clause of €35 million that is active in 2019, per Sport Bild (h/t ESPN FC's Mark Lovell).

Here's why clubs won't hesitate to spend that amount on the World Cup winner:

The relatively small clause makes him a prime target, and Stuttgart may find it difficult to convince him to stay.

Per Calciomercato (h/t Football Italia), Bayern remain the favourites for his services, although the rumours involving Barcelona have increased of late.