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The Ghana midfielder will not be allowed to leave his German employers on a free transfer this summer.

According to German newspaper Bild, Schalke 04 would rather Kevin-Prince Boateng spent the final year of his contract with them, rather than letting him leave on a free transfer.

It is little secret that the Gelesnkirchen outfit are keen for the Ghana international to leave the club this summer, following a complete breakdown in the relationship between the player and the club.

Back in May, the Black Star—along with fellow midfielder Sidney Sam—were indefinitely suspended by the club’s sporting director Horst Heldt following a disappointing defeat to Koln.

Subsequently, the former Tottenham Hotspur has been heavily linked with a move away from the club, having managed only eleven starts in the Bundesliga during the 2014-15 season.

Bild have confirmed that the club chiefs will not release Boateng—whose current contract runs until June 2016—in order for him to move to another club on a free transfer.

Indeed, the Miners are keen to recuperate a fee for the player, and have insisted that they would rather see him sit inactive in the stands for 12 months than leave for another side for nothing.

The news will come as a blow for Galatasaray and AC Milan, both of whom have been linked with a summer move for the midfielder, although it remains to be seen if either club will be willing to shell out a transfer fee for Prince.

The Turkish giants are keen on the box-to-box midfielder, if Boateng’s agent is to be believed, although Milan—for whom the player featured between 2010 and 2013—may be another appealing.

A tertiary possibility for KPB’s future may come from the United States, where New York Red Bulls have been linked to his services.

Boateng won the League Cup with Spurs in 2008, and both the Italian Super Cup and the 2011 Serie A title with Milan.