Bayern Munich president slams Barcelona for Kimmich "flirt"

The Bavarians have no plans of selling their star midfielder this summer.

Bayern Munich president Herbert Heiner has criticized Barcelona for publicly expressing their interest in signing Joshua Kimmich.

The 28-year-old has developed into a cornerstone of Bayern’s squad since breaking into their senior squad under Pep Guardiola. As Bayern’s planned future captain, Kimmich rarely gets linked with other clubs.

Barca, however, have shown interest in signing Kimmich this summer. Earlier this month, Xavi appeared to encourage the German international to leave Allianz Arena.

“I talked to him in Qatar, he said he was a fan of me,” Xavi told reporters when asked about Kimmich.

“He is under contract with Bayern so it depends on him. Look at Lewy for example, he wanted to come.”

Following Xavi’s remarks, Kimmich himself dismissed rumours about a possible move to Camp Nou. Now, Bayern’s president has reiterated the club’s stance on Kimmich’s central role in their squad.

“I don’t understand why they [Barça] openly and offensively ‘flirt’ with our player. Joshua Kimmich is an absolute cornerstone for us,” Heiner told Sky Germany (via Fabrizio Romano).

“He’s firmly in our plans for the future, for sure.”

With Bayern having no intention of selling Kimmich, Barcelona will most likely shift their focus toward completing a move for Ilkay Gundogan. The Catalans, however, could face competition from Arsenal and PSG, who’ve joined the transfer race in recent weeks.