Mourinho recently spoke of the difficulty of attracting the game’s biggest names to Old Trafford, saying: “Real Madrid sell who they want to sell, Barcelona sell who they want to sell, Bayern Munich sell who they want to sell.
“So then it is more difficult to have a very good market.”
And Bayern CEO Rummenigge said: “I have to agree with Jose Mourinho — no club in the world can sign our players against our will.”
Rummenigge said he believed the club’s development in recent years means “the best German and foreign players view Bayern differently these days,” adding: “I believe only Real Madrid are ahead of us as a football brand.
“Behind them come Barcelona, Manchester United and Bayern, three clubs at the same level.”
He said the Bundesliga champions “have made continual progress and established ourselves at the top.”
Rumenigge pinpointed two events as key to Bayern’s growth, saying the decision to turn down a Chelsea offer of €65 million plus Jose Bosingwa for Franck Ribery nine years ago was “a milestone.”
“At the time in 2008 that was an absolutely unbelievable offer,” he said.
“The decision not to sell Franck Ribery was a milestone in the development of Bayern. That was the moment Bayern became a buying club.”
Rummenigge’s comments came after Robert Lewandowski’s agent said there was nothing in the rumours linking the Bayern striker with a move to United.
Bayern have also said they rejected a €100m bid from United for Thomas Muller during Louis van Gaal’s reign.
“What applied to Franck Ribery in 2008 went for Thomas Muller in 2015. We don’t sell any player who is important to the quality of our team,” Rummenigge added.
He said that Lewandowski’s decision to sign a contract extension also “showed that we are able to keep our best players and that the best players in the world are very much at home here.”
Rummenigge praised the club’s playing style and ability to be financially competitive, saying both helped attract new players.
Last month, Mourinho said he felt Bayern “start winning the league in the summer.”
He added: “They go to Borussia Dortmund every year and buy their best player.
“One year they go there and get Lewandowski. The next year, they go there, Mario Gotze. The next year they go there, Mats Hummels.
“So they win the league in the summer.”
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