Sebastian Kehl denies claims of excessive salary demands from Paris Brunner's family

Sebastian Kehl has refuted suggestions that excessive salary demands from Paris Brunner's representatives have resulted in a contract stalemate between the two parties.

Paris Brunner is one of the most exciting young players at Borussia Dortmund, and showcased his incredible talent at the U-17s World Cup and Euros last year. The forward has also been given a glimpse of first-team football in recent months, and will hope for a permanent promotion to Edin Terzic's squad in the near future.

However, reports have claimed in recent weeks that talks over a new contract between Borussia Dortmund and Brunner's representatives have reached a standstill. BILD claimed earlier this week that this was due to his family's exorbitant financial demands. The tabloid added that the 18 year old's father is already exploring the transfer market.

Those claims have now been rubbished by Sebastian Kehl, who said that they are in positive discussions with Brunner's representatives. The BVB sporting director added that he would be delighted to see Brunner continue his path with the club.

"I've also read the reports and I can say that there's no truth to them," Kehl said in an interview with Ruhr Nachrichten. "In all honesty, there are no demands from the family. We are still in constructive talks, which we will continue in April and try to find a common ground in this process."

"At this point, however, I would like to take a stand for Paris, who has often been wrongly criticised lately. He is a youngster from our own youth ranks, a boy with a lot of quality, who is fully committed to the team here and has now taken his first steps in professional football with our U-23s. We would be delighted to see him continue on his path at Borussia Dortmund."

Paris Brunner has made 23 appearances for the Borussia Dortmund U-19s this season, and has 18 goals to his name. He has just under 18 months left on his current BVB contract.