Karl-Heinz Rummenigge Discusses Bayern Munich's Plan for James Rodriguez

Bayern Munich won't sign James Rodriguez on a permanent deal just to use him to raise transfer funds, tactics club chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge compared to "human trafficking."

Rummenigge spoke to AS (h/t Darren Wells of the Daily Mirror) about the future of Rodriguez, who has been on loan from Real Madrid since 2017: "That's not the style of Bayern. We don't want to do human trafficking, to push something elsewhere to make some money. FC Bayern has never been that way."

Wells noted how Premier League rivals Arsenal and Liverpool are keen on Rodriguez. Their interest offers Die Roten the chance to cash in, provided the Bundesliga champions exercise the option to buy him first.

It's been a tough season for Rodriguez, despite Bayern retaining the German top-flight title and securing the DFB-Pokal. He wasn't shy about expressing his displeasure with the tactics of manager Niko Kovac.

Even so, Rummenigge believes the Colombia international still has value and revealed Bayern are ready to discuss possibly keeping him in the long-term: "We will surely come together next week and we will decide what to do. We must put all options on the table and decide how to handle all those things that aren’t certain yet."

Keeping Rodriguez may not be easy given his difficulties adapting to Kovac. The Croatian had been under pressure, but he's received several votes of confidence since Bayern secured the domestic double thanks to a 3-0 win over RB Leipzig on Saturday.

Among them, club president Uli Hoeness has explained Kovac isn't going anywhere:

Kovac has earned the reprieve after making history during his first season in the dugout at the Allianz Arena:

Regardless of any issues with Kovac, Rodriguez played his part in Bayern's double success. The 27-year-old showcased the vision and flair he produced during spells with Porto, AS Monaco and Real.

Rodriguez became Bayern's creative fulcrum on league duty:

Those attributes might be enough to convince Die Roten to pay the £36 million needed to sign the South American permanently. However, Sky Sport in Germany (h/t Jack Figg of The Sun) has reported the attacking midfielder doesn't want to stay in Munich.

Going back to the Spanish capital may not be the player's next-best option, though. Marca has named Rodriguez as one of the players manager Zinedine Zidane wants to offload this summer.

Rodriguez won't be short of suitors, with Wells identifying Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus as other interested parties, along with Liverpool and the Gunners.

A player with Rodriguez's technique and eye for a pass should command a huge fee this summer, but Bayern would be wise to retain his influence.

He could be key in a new-look attack set to develop without the influence of decorated wingers Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery.