Bayern Munich boss Jupp Heynckes insists Athletic Bilbao midfielder Javi Martinez is worth no more than €22m.
The Bundesliga giants have been chasing the Spanish international all summer but Heynckes, a former boss at San Mames, believes the €40m price tag the Basques have placed on his head is unrealistic.
“We are still interested in the player but his real price is between €20m and €22m, so to pay €40m for Javi Martinez is obscene as he has a different market value,” said Heynckes in declarations to TZ.
The 67-year-old believes there is still a chance Martinez could leave Bilbao, although he reckons the odds of him joining Bayern now appear slim.
“I know they say that the lad said he rejected Bayern and I had to smile at that,” he revealed.
“I know the Basque mentality, how the players feel as though they have to speak out, but that is one thing and the other is the exorbitant clause in his contract.
“That remains, as before, the main problem to any transfer.”
