Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer has said the club cannot keep Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka “at any cost”.
Goretzka, 26, is in the final year of his contract at the Bundesliga club while the 26-year-old Kimmich has two years remaining on his deal.
Bayern chief Hainer, however, told German publication Kicker that both players “will certainly not be kept at any cost”.
“The players know what they have at Bayern, they are paid very well here too, everyone gets their salary,” he said.
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“And they can win titles with us now, and also in the future.”
He added: “We are monitoring the transfer market, which is open until the end of August, to see whether there are still one or two possibilities.”
“But we almost exclusively have national team players of the highest quality, so there is no urgent need to sign someone quickly.”
Bayern are chasing a 10th consecutive Bundesliga title but dropped points in their season-opening 1-1 draw at Borussia Monchengladbach on Friday.
They next face Borussia Dortmund for the German Super Cup on Tuesday evening.
GO DEEPER
Dortmund's devastating start gives them chance to start asking questions of champions Bayern
How important are Kimmich and Goretzka to Bayern?
The German duo of Kimmich and Goretzka have become close to indispensable at the heart of midfield for the reigning Bundesliga champions over the last season.
Kimmich has made the No 6 role his own for both club and country, while Goretzka has established himself as the slightly more attacking partner, scoring 25 goals in 113 games.
Bayern are also particularly light on reliable alternatives to the Kimmich-Goretzka partnership in central midfield, which explains their interest in RB Leipzig’s Marcel Sabitzer.
What challenges are Bayern facing this season?
Bayern don’t have the money to strengthen the squad significantly due to the pandemic, and they brought in a bunch of players that haven’t really worked out.
On top of that, they have defensive injuries with Lucas Hernandez and Benjamin Pavard unavailable.
Also, previous head coach Hansi Flick was incredibly popular in the dressing room. Julian Nagelsmann is an outstanding coach but succeeding Flick is not an easy task.
Hainer and Oliver Kahn, the club’s new executives, haven’t ruled out new signings but continue to insist that the squad is excellent. It’s a fairly incongruent position, but also quite indicative of Bayern’s problems of adjusting to a new reality with relatively little money at their disposal.
A defeat at Dortmund on Tuesday would see their insecurities grow further and conversely encourage their opponents to believe that the perennial champions are indeed vulnerable. The last time Dortmund faced a Nagelsmann side three months ago, incidentally, they thumped them and RB Leipzig 4-1 in the DFB-Pokal final.
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Where can I find out more?
Dortmund face Bayern in the Super Cup tonight — but can they double down on their thrilling start to the season?
Marco Rose’s side thumped Eintracht Frankfurt 5-2 in their season-opener on Saturday and they didn’t just convincingly beat a top-six Bundesliga side; the quick, beautiful and sweaty football they played was also perfectly in tune with the club’s self-image as the league’s most emotionally involving side.
The Athletic’s Raphael Honigstein has assessed Dortmund’s spell-binding start to the season. To read more about it, Go Deeper below.
(Photo: Alex Gottschalk/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
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