Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rumenigge has voiced his displeasure over the comments made by Robert Lewandowski about the club's transfer policy in recent years.
Lewandowski recently spoke about the club's transfer strategies and said that they need to sign more world-class quality players to improve the squad and to compete with the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Bayern need to spend to compete, says Lewandowski
In a recent interview with Spiegel Online, Lewandowski expressed his views and rather his dissatisfaction with the money spent and the quality of players that have arrived at the Allianz Arena.
Lewandowski said that Bayern will have to "come up with something creative" if the club's intention is to keep buying world-class players and integrating them into their squad. The Polish international further said, "if you want to compete at the top, you need to have these quality players".
The former Borussia Dortmund striker, who joined Bayern on a free transfer in the summer of 2014, underlined the fact that the club needs to spend more money to bring in more quality players." To date, Bayern Munich have never spent more than around €40 million for a player. In international football that has long since been more of an average [price] than a top price", he said.
Despite winning three straight domestic titles, Lewandowski is dissatisfied with the club's progress in Europe's elite competition. He believes that money to spend and success in terms of titles are more important than anything at the moment. Rumenigge disagrees.
Rumenigge regrets Lewandowski's comments
In an interview with Bild, Rumenigge discussed, among other things, Lewandowski's views about the club and its recruitment policy for players.
The former Bayern legend admitted that it "would be a shame" if Lewandowski saw football as a matter of money and trophies only. He highlighted the fact that "loyalty" is important to the club and is in the "Bayern DNA" itself.
Despite Lewandowski's fears of Bayern being left behind in the transfer market, Rumenigge said,"We've had a serious and successful philosophy for a long time and enjoyed great success with that. Rather than Lewandowski, I share the viewpoint of the Chancellor [Angela Merkel], who says we should regulate and reduce the amounts".
Paris Saint-Germain's dealings in the transfer market have caused quite the stir in world football and Rumenigge believes that Lewandowski has been affected by the big money transfers.
Nonetheless, he says, "he is employed by us as a footballer and earns a lot of money. I regret his comments. Anybody who criticises the trainer, the club or his teammates will immediately be in trouble with me personally."