Bayern Munich chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has advised Manchester City not to bank on signing the Bavarian club's stars, despite the imminent arrival of Pep Guardiola at the Etihad for next season.
The Manchester club announced the capture of current Bayern boss Guardiola in February, prompting speculation that the Spaniard would pluck many of his current charges from the German champions.
However Rummenigge has made it clear he has no intentions of letting his top players leave the Allianz Arena.
"I was quite surprised about my Manchester City colleague's comments," Rummenigge told Bild.
"Contracts are contracts and they should be respected, also by Manchester City."
One of the players linked to City, all-around star David Alaba, recently firmed his commitment to Bayern by signing a new three-year contract last week.
Rummenigge said the signing underlined the Bundesliga giants' strength in the market.
"Bayern Munich always want to be the team in charge. That is always our goal," Rummenigge stated.
"We also managed to achieve that in the case of Alaba. Bayern were the club calling the shots. And not some club from England with the crazy offers they can make."