BERLIN, Germany - Bayern Munich coach Niko Kovac has attempted to end the speculation over Robert Lewandowski, saying that the Polish striker has accepted he will not be transferred from the club.
"Robert knows what I think about him," Kovac told Wednesday's edition of the Sport Bild magazine. "He is worldwide definitely one of the top three strikers in this position. We will definitely not let him go. That is what I've told him. Robert has accepted it."
The Polish striker, who has been linked with moves to Real Madrid and Chelsea, has been at Bayern since 2014 when he joined on a free transfer from Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund. Lewandowski, 29, was reportedly eager to move on this summer despite having a contract at Bayern to 2021.
Bayern have already sold two players in the current transfer window, with Brazilian Douglas Costa joining Juventus permanently after spending last season on loan in Turin and Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal siging for Barcelona. Kovac, meanwhile, ruled out a move for winger Ante Rebic of his former club Eintracht Frankfurt.
"Ante is a strong personality and a fantastic player who has developed brilliantly in the last two years at Frankfurt and at the World Cup with Croatia," Kovac said. "But if you look at our squad you see that we have a lot of quality in his position. Signing Ante Rebic therefore makes no sense for us. That's how it is now and will be tomorrow."
President Uli Hoeneß invited the team for a bite to eat at Tegernsee last night! 🍽 🥨 #FCBayern #MiaSanMia pic.twitter.com/AVZFk2ZLWe
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