Bayern chairman rules out Messi bid as 'absurd'

Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has ruled out bidding for superstar Lionel Messi, who has a buyout clause worth 250 million euros ($338.5 million) in his Barcelona contract.

"We are talking about simply absurd figures, a transfer fee that is even higher than what we spent on Javi Martinez. We won't go there," Rummenigge told German Sky Sports.

"Barcelona's president Sandro Rosell is an old friend and I know they would never sell Messi. He is a saint at Barcelona.

"And I think it would be in Messi's best interest to stay at Barcelona. He fits in perfectly there."

Rumours of a Bayern bid for Messi, which would see the Argentinian link up with his former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, have been circulating in Germany.

The Bavarians could probably afford the enormous sum. A fortnight ago Bayern revealed they had posted a record 432.8 million euros in sales during last season's campaign.

They became the first German club to claim the treble when they won the Champions League, a 23rd German championship and the DFB Cup.

But even Bayern coach Guardiola has said his former protege is at the right club.

"Would I sign Messi? No, no! Barcelona is the best place for him," Guardiola is reported to have said.

MOLE

Meanwhile, Guardiola has threatened the mole who is leaking details of tactics to the German press.

"No matter who it is, heads will roll. I will throw him out and he'll never play for me again," Guardiola fumed to German daily Bild.

Guardiola is furious after details of Bayern's tactical plan appeared in Bild, hours before Saturday's 3-0 league win at rivals Borussia Dortmund in a replay of May's Champions League final.

Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge confirmed the "mole affair" to German Sky on Sunday with a tongue-in-cheek reference to America's National Security Agency, which is currently under fire for covertly collecting data on European leaders.

"We won't be turning to the NSA to find out who it is, but I would advise the person concerned to immediately stop this performance," said Rummenigge.

"Otherwise he will have a serious problem, not only with Pep Guardiola, but with the whole club."

Bayern are currently four points clear in the Bundesliga and the holders have already qualified for the Champions League knock-out stages with two games left.

This is not the first time a mole has recently struck in German football.

In June 2012, Germany head coach Joachim Loew was presented with a similar problem when the team's line-up was also leaked to Bild during the European football championships.

But on that occasion the mole was never revealed.