'Leave Gotze in peace!' - Sammer hits out at exit rumours

Bayern Munich sporting director Matthias Sammer has called for Mario Gotze to be left in peace as speculation continues regarding his future at the Allianz Arena.

The former Borussia Dortmund man has been struggling to find his feet under Pep Guardiola and the close-season arrival of Douglas Costa is set to further threaten his chances of starting regularly.

Gotze featured for the final 25 minutes of Friday's opening-day Bundesliga victory against Hamburg before playing much of Monday's friendly win at Dynamo Dresden.

Sammer has now sought to quell speculation of Gotze leaving Bayern amid ongoing reports of interest from Juventus and Arsenal.

"Let's just all agree on one thing and that is that we just let Mario play football," Sammer told Bild.

"He enjoys our complete confidence, but now leave the boy in peace. It will be better if we do not talk about it constantly.

"If you want to win something big, you need just these players. Dealing with them is even more important than with those who play."

Gotze's relationship with Guardiola has been the subject of scrutiny in recent weeks, with the midfielder having suggested the Bayern boss does not talk to him enough.

The 23-year-old later backtracked on his comments, insisting he was "happy" and "comfortable" at the club.